


Treasure Hunt (The Maze Runner)

by Vee_of_nus



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Action, Angst, Completed, Fluff, Gen, Love, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:08:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 30
Words: 57,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26903386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vee_of_nus/pseuds/Vee_of_nus
Summary: "It's like one big treasure hunt, but we're the treasure."Juno never thought she would escape her Maze. And when she did, the world was nothing like they expected. So when Juno finds herself running away from WICKED with a band of misfits —strangers, really— she can’t help but feel her annoyance grow.As tensions run high and their chances of escaping lower, can Juno keep up with the spinning world around her, or is it all just too much?
Relationships: Alby/Newt (Maze Runner), Brenda/Jorge (Maze Runner), Brenda/Thomas (Maze Runner), Gally/Newt (Maze Runner), Minho/Newt (Maze Runner), Newt/Female OC, Newt/Original Character, Newt/Thomas (Maze Runner)
Kudos: 20





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to everyone who’s taking the time to read this! It was originally written on my Wattpad (@ JarofPickles). 
> 
> Enjoy:)

**FREEDOM. THAT'S WHAT** Juno has first felt when she got out of her Maze. That feeling of freedom stuck with her, pumping through her veins like adrenaline even when they had been saved by the mysterious people. They were lucky that they came right when they got out of their Maze, and Juno couldn't help but wonder if it was more than luck that brought their saviours to them.

Mr. Janson had told them that from the kids they had saved from the Mazes so far, their Maze had the biggest group of survivors. Juno didn't doubt it; Luna, a genius who had been sent into their Maze, had figured out how to program the monsters and shut them off. They had only lost three people, totalling the survivors at 32 kids. At least half of them were under the age of twelve. When they were saved, the girls that were twelve and younger were rushed into a different berg than the older girls. Juno clung to herself, telling herself to keep it together until they got to the facility one of the armed men had told them they were going. "You're safe." The words echoed in the brunette's head. Were they really? She just wanted to see the younger girls and make sure they were safe. At that moment, she'd thought they were going to the same place.

It wasn't until Juno had asked Mr. Janson where the kids were that they were told they were at the children's facility. Juno, usually a very calm girl, felt a surge of anger coming upon her. She pushed it down and smiled sweetly. "Will we be able to see them again?"

"When we get you to the safe-havens, there is a chance you get placed at the same one as some of them." Janson nods, smiling reassuringly. "We ship kids out every night, but we have to rotate where they're going so WICKED doesn't catch on."

Juno nods. "That makes sense." But it didn't. Not in her mind. Why not just send all the kids from the same Maze to a safe-haven? Why separate them from the only people they knew; their family.

The girls were given time to shower then they were brought to the cafeteria. There were a lot more people here than Juno had expected. A lot more people must have escaped their Mazes. The girls stuck together for the most part; Juno went to sit at an empty table off to the left of the room, away from the crowds of kids. Hally, a tall blonde girl who didn't give a care in the world about what anyone thought of her, followed. Kiko, a dark skinned girl with curly hair, Reese, a short girl with short hair and a cute little accent, and Luna followed as well. A couple quieter girls followed, but the the table filled up quickly and some of the others went to sit with other people, making new friends.

Although Juno had always been someone eager to make new friends, she didn't want to right now. She wanted to eat her food and then crawl into a nice warm bed and sleep away her problems, and maybe even never get back out of that bed. When Janson came into the cafeteria, he caught Juno's attention immediately. She watched as he walked to the front of the room. He cleared his throat and began to speak, explaining that if your name was called you would have to go up and stand behind him.

"So this is how they chose who goes?" Juno whispers. "Randomly?" She scoffs. "This is bullshit."

Hally nods. "You can say that again."

Kiko shifts uncomfortably. "But they helped us out of the Maze." She speaks quietly. "They're gonna bring us to safety."

The freedom Juno has first felt was beginning to fizz out. "I don't think this is a safe place." She shakes her head as three girls from their Maze are called up. "I think this is a prison."

•••  
  


When the next round of names was called the next night, five girls from their Maze were called up. "I want to believe that they're bringing us to safety." Reese sighs. "But I don't feel like it."

Luna nods, agreeing with her. "Something isn't adding up." She pushes her food around on her plate. "They're only naming ten people per night, but the bergs we were in can carry at least thirty people comfortably. So why are they only taking that small number? The bergs could easily fly under WICKED's radar, and they would be faster than any helicopter."

Hally pushes her tray of food away from her. "I was talking to some of the other guys at lunch, and they told me that the kid sitting in that corner has been here for five days so far." Juno frowns as Hally continues. "The others are usually only here for two days max. Maybe three."

Juno sits up a little straighter. "So why aren't they calling him?"

Hally shrugs. "Well, here's another thing they told me: all the other Mazes were sent one person of the opposite sex. So why weren't we?"

Luna frowns. "That doesn't make any sense. If WICKED was running the same test, just on different groups, then why weren't we run the same way."

Juno leans in so only the girls around her can hear her. "Maybe it's because of the first escape."

"You think they really made it out?" Kiko whispers.

"What it they did?" Luna adds. "What if they made it out of the Maze, and they were taken to one of these places."

Hally leans in. "What it they made it out of this place?"

Juno leans back, shaking her head in thought. What if the first group to leave was alive? But what if their names were called?

"Okay, but that's not it." Hally shakes her head. "They also told me that the longest the people were in their Mazes were three years."

Juno whips her bear to look over at Hally so quickly she gives herself whiplash. "What?" She exclaims loudly, attracting the attention of the tables around them. She shrinks in her seat and waits for them to look away. "What the fuck." She whispers. "You're sure?" Hally nods reassuringly.

Kiko frowns. "So why were we in there for six damn years?"

"I think we should do some searching tonight." Vera, a girl with straight long black hair to match her long body, says quietly.

"You think we could get away with it?" Luna's eyebrows scrunch together.

Hally smiles. "I think we can get away with anything."

•••

In the moment, Juno had not doubted Hally's statement. They had overpowered WICKED, turning off their beasts to escape the Maze. It wasn't easy because they had to take care of the younger girls, but these girls believed they were capable of anything. But now, she didn't believe that.

After having joined Vera, who didn't stay in the same bunk room as them, they were six total trying to sneak around. They had gotten out of their room through the unlocked door, which Kiko had tried to use as an excuse as to why the people who had saved them were trustworthy. Juno really just blamed it on the fact that their bunk room was the last at the end of the dead-end, so the guards probably just got lazy.

Sneaking through the hallways had proven easy until they neared the laboratories and medical wing. There, guards monitored the halls. The girls would have to take turns running across the hall so they wouldn't be spotted by the guards. Juno was surprised one of the security cameras hadn't picked them up yet, but it was also nighttime so maybe the guard monitoring them didn't worry that much to monitor them at every second.

Juno stops in her tracks when she sees doctors in lab coats leading guards with gurneys covered in sheets, with what looks like the shape of a body underneath of them. "What the hell?" She murmurs.

The other girls all peak around the corner, watching the same scene unfold. "I don't think we should be out anymore." Hally mumbles.

"You think?" Kiko whispers.

Reese backs away from the corner. "Let's just go back to bed."

Vera nods. "I agree."

"I want to know what's going on." Juno frowns, not pulling her eyes away from the people until the door closes behind them.

Hally grabs onto Juno's shoulders. "We all do, June! But we have to go before we get caught." She whispers harshly.

Juno nods. "Yeah, you're right."

They start to go back the way they came, stopping at a corner when they come to a cross-way. "There's two guards down to the left, so we're going to run across the hall one at a time."

Hally went first, and Kiko followed her quickly on her heels. They waited a moment until the guard looked away again, then Reese and Luna ran across.

Juno goes next, jumping across the hall seeking shelter beside her friends. It was a close call; the guard began to turn around just as she made it behind the wall. But Vera doesn't make it; she had began to follow Juno as she reached the middle, but Vera wasn't fast enough. The guard turns and he spots her. "You there! Stop!" He yells. He turns to his other friend, and they both begin to run down the hall.

"Shit!" Hally curses. "Go! Go!" They all whisper, beginning to run down the hall. Hally, the tallest of them all with the longest legs, leads the group back to their bunks.

"Where are they?" Juno stops, turning around. "Where's Vera?" The other girls stop, and they hear her struggles from around the corner. "Fuck! They got her!"

Kiko grabs onto Juno's hand. "We gotta go, June."

"We have to go back for her!"

Kiko shakes her head, pulling Juno. "No. We can't. We have to go to our bunks. They'll probably come check on all the other bunk rooms now."

Coming to her senses, Juno nods. "You're right. Let's go."

Another minute of running brought them to their bunk room. Juno stops in front of the door, turning the lock on the handle from the outside and shutting the door.

"Why'd you do that?" Reese frowns.

"Cause now they'll think the door was locked this whole time; there's no way we could have left." Juno nods, switching off the light. "Now get into bed and pretend your sleeping!"

Juno had been right. The girls had all crawled into bed, and when twenty minutes passed and she thought no one was coming, their door was unlocked and opened. Someone stepped into the dark room, and she could hear Janson telling the guards to count the kids. After a minute, the person was gone, closing the door and locking it behind them.


	2. Buried Truths

**THE NEXT MORNING** at breakfast, everyone was talking about Vera. Juno felt guilty; they had left her behind, running to save their own lives. She felt even worse that she was able to sleep that night, although having given someone's life up. Hally had tried to convince the brunette that what they did was best; if they had all been caught, they would all be dead. But Juno wasn't convinced. Was Vera going to be with those bodies being pushed into the laboratory tonight? Or did they dispose of her body? Or was she still alive?

She didn't bother paying attention to anyone around her until Hally leans forward, snapping her fingers in front of her face. "Listen up." She speaks lowly so only the girls can hear her. "We're _never_ going to speak of that. To anyone." Her eyes roam over the girls, searching nods from all of them. "Promise each other." The other girls nod, all murmuring their promises. Hally's eyes stop on June. "Promise us, Juno."

The use of her full name startles June a little because no one ever called her that. "Yeah." She nods as they all watch her. "I promise."

"Good." Hally nods. "I'm going to go hang with the other girls." She gestured towards a table of boys and girls, walking over to sit with them.

Luna's the first to speak. "She's changed since we got out of the Maze."

Kiko grumbles. "I think it's the boys."

"Well whatever it is, she's a stick in the arse." Reese rolls her eyes.

Juno didn't bother looking up from her tray of food. All of a sudden, she had lost her appetite. Instead, when she looked at the food, she felt nauseas. "I need to go." She gets up, walking towards the doors.

The guards stop her. "Excuse me, miss, we can't let you through."

"I don't feel good. I just need to go to the washroom."

The guard shakes his head. "I can't let you go. You'll have to wait until breakfast is done."

"You don't understand, I really have to." Juno can feel the vomit rising in her throat. Vera was the only thing on her mind. It was all her fault.

"Miss," The guard speaks louder. "You'll have to wait."

"No!" She exclaims, attracting the attention of a group of people outside the cafeteria.

Janson, being a part of that group, approaches the door. "What's going on?"

"I don't feel good, I think I'm going to throw up." Juno speaks quickly, not pausing for breath. "Please, I just need to go to the washroom."

"Let her through." Janson nods. "I'll take her." He places his hand on her back, leading her through the the hall and towards the washroom. He stops beside the door. "I'll be waiting here." He smiles reassuringly.

Juno pushes the door open and closes it quickly, locking the door. Was he going to take her to? To wherever they had taken Vera after she got caught? Or had Vera told him about them? No. She would never.

June lunges for the toilet, throwing up the little food she had eaten earlier. When there was nothing to come up anymore, she gagged over the toilet until she could pull herself back. Flushing the toilet, she goes to lean over the sink. "Fuck me. Fuck me." She whimpers over and over again. She refuses to let tears cloud her vision. She wasn't going to cry over something she couldn't change.

There was a knock on the door, startling Juno. "Are you okay in there?" Janson calls out.

Juno clears her throat. "Yeah, just a minute." She splashed her face with water then dries is with a piece of brown paper towel.

She walks over to the door, then stops. She gives herself a moment to breath before unlocking and opening it.

Janson searches her face for something, any hint. Juno doesn't give any to him. "I want to talk with you." Her heart drops to her stomach, but she doesn't show it. "Come with me." He leads her to a door down the hall. Unlocking it with his key card, he ushers her into the room. It's a small, grey room with a table and two chairs. An interrogation room. "Take a seat." June sits on one side of the table and Janson sits across from her. "I assume you've heard of what happened to the girl from your Maze?"

Juno nods slowly. "Everyone's heard of it."

Janson nods. "That's true." He watches her, not speaking up.

Juno sits up straighter in her chair. "I have a question, if that's okay." Janson nods. "If all you're doing is sending us to safe-havens, then what happened to Vera? What would she even have found that would make her disappear?"

Janson smiles. "I knew you were a smart one, June." He stands up. "You're right: there was nothing for her to find. She happened to come across the kids boarding the berg." Janson was so convincing that if Juno hadn't been there, she would have believed him. She wondered how long he practiced this answer. "She was desperate, and scared. We let her board the berg and leave to the safe-haven with them."

Juno forces herself to smile. He wasn't the only one who could lie that easily. "That was really nice of you to let her leave." She nods. "I don't doubt she was scared. Ever since we had made the plan to leave the Maze, Vera worried a lot. All she could think of was if something went wrong." That wasn't a lie, Vera was a worrier.

Janson presses his lips together, nodding. That's not the answer he was looking for. Juno could tell. "I'll get a guard to bring you to your room. Breakfast should be over soon."

She nods. A guard escorts her back to her room, and closes the door behind her. She hears the lock click and the guard's footsteps get farther away.

Juno stands in the middle of the room, letting her thoughts take over. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to kill Janson and tear this place apart. But she knew she wouldn't do any of that. She was a well-composed girl who kept herself from revealing it all. She never affected others, and kept to herself although she wanted to break through. Her every thought was on what she would do. She wasn't confident in herself, and it made her close herself down. If you wanted to learn more about Juno, you'd have to put in the work and climb the tall walls she had built for herself. She never cried, because crying would mean opening up. She had expectations of herself, and she held them high. It could mean disappointment in herself, but she was hard on herself. She blamed herself for other people's problems, even if she wasn't the real cause. No matter what she told herself, those dark negative thoughts clouded her brain. Every step was a cautious one. From the outside, Juno looked so friendly that anyone would talk to her. She kept that façade on, for herself and her friends. She was strong, but her strength was fragile. The Maze Trials had put her and her family through so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aisling Franciosi  
> as   
> Juno
> 
> "i hold so many small regrets  
> and what-ifs down inside my head  
> some confidence it couldn't hurt me"
> 
> Prom Dress - mxmtoon


	3. A New Friend

**WHEN THE GIRLS** returned from breakfast, they bombarded Juno with questions. She answered simply, telling them that she didn't feel good so she was sent back here to lay down. Although none of them looked satisfied, they didn't ask anymore. Instead, they all laid down on bunks, chitchatting. Juno, wanting to take her mind off of everything going on, joined them.

They spoke for a while, and Juno tried her best to participate but she wasn't in the mood to talk about what they wanted to do when they got to safe-havens. All of them knew there was a small chance of those safe-havens actually existing, but they still let themselves dream. Juno was guilty of dreaming too.

Kiko was in the middle of talking about how she hoped to find someplace tropical as her safe haven —similarly to their Maze—. After having spoken to the other kids from different Mazes, they had learnt that their Maze was different. Unlike the fields and forests of the other Mazes, their Mazes had tropical palm-trees and a sandy beach with a little pond. When they had escaped their Maze to the desert, Juno had realized that WICKED had just been lazy building their Maze, and just covered part of it in grass. Kiko spoke quickly, stopping only when the door to their bunk room opened.

Their hearts all pounded harder until Doctor McDonell came in with a girl. Juno didn't recognize the girl; she had medium length brown hair, brown eyes and a skeleton-like complexion. There was no doubt in their minds this girl had just escaped her own Maze.

Kiko stands up quickly to welcome the girl. Juno follows her lead, along with Reese.

"Girls, this is Leanne. She'll be staying with you until decided otherwise." Dr. McDonell smiles to the girls before beginning to walk backwards out the door. "Make the introductions quick, dinner is in twenty minutes."

Already? Time had passed quickly.

Hally stands up once the door closes. "Hi! I'm Hally." She says excitedly.

Luna stands up beside Hally shyly. "I'm Luna." She nervously tucks her hair behind her ear.

"I'm Kiko." She waves enthusiastically.

Reese follows Kiko's gesture. "I'm Reese." Juno watches Leanne's surprised face as she hears Reese's accent.

Juno smiles from the back of the group. "I'm Juno, but everyone calls me June."

"It's nice to meet you all." The girl smiles. "I'm Leanne."

"Is it true you were in a Maze with all boys?" Reese bursts out suddenly, sitting on one of the bunks. The other girls follow quickly, and Leanne sits on the empty one across from Juno and Kiko. Juno guessed that the word of the new arrivals had travelled fast.

"Reese!" Luna scolds.

Hally snorts from her top bunk. "I wish." She turns to face Leanne, her stare boring into her eyes. "It was probably a rumour, right Leanne?"

Juno wanted to reach up and smack Hally hard. She was being rude and Juno nor any of the other girls were in the mood for it.

They wait for Leanne to answer. "Well, no."

"So you really were the only girl?" Kiko sits up straighter, her curiosity heightened.

"The last few days we were in the Maze another girl arrived, but for the other three years I was there, it was just me with a whole bunch of boys." Leanne shrugs.

Juno can hear Hally shifting in her bed above her. She can just hear Hally getting ready to embarrass their new bunk mate. "So you probably got some, huh?"

Juno watches Leanne's cheeks burn red. She immediately feels bad for the girl, who doesn't look up from her lap. "She's obviously not as slutty as you, Hally, so no, she probably didn't." Juno snarls up at Hally.

The other girls snicker quietly, And Leanne smiles at Juno appreciatively. "So, were you girls in the same Maze?" Leanne changes the subject.

Hally quieted down and let her friends do the talking, sulking on her bed. They explained to Leanne that from the girls in this room, Kiko was the first to arrive. Hally arrived next, then Juno, Reese, and Luna. Luna was one of the last girls to arrive, and hadn't adjusted to life in the Maze before they escaped.

Their conversation ended when the door was opened and they were told it was time for dinner.

They lead Leanne towards the cafeteria, chatting loudly. Hally walks at the back of the group alongside Juno. "Just try and be nice to her, please?" Juno pleads silently.

The cafeteria had already begun to fill up. They follow their regular roumaine and go pile food onto their plates before sitting at their regular table. Leanne sits beside Juno, and Juno watches Leanne watch Hally walk past them to a different table.

She frowns. "What's up with Hally?"

"Oh! She was all cool when we were in the Maze, but since we've gotten out and arrived here she's been hanging with some other boys, acting different and thinking she'd too cool for us." Luna scoffs, taking a bite from her food.

Juno spots Hally making her way towards them. She sets her tray down across from Juno and sits down. "So, Leanne, are those the boys from your Maze?" The blonde asks, nodding towards the table where they're sitting.

Juno follows Hally's eyes towards the table of boys. She studies them.

"Um, yeah, that's them." Leanne shifts uncomfortably beside Juno.

She watches Hally study the boys. "Who's the dark-haired one, in the blueish-grey shirt?" Juno shifts her eyes from the blonde boy to the dark-haired boy.

"That's Thomas." Leanne says, obviously annoyed.

"Oh, is he your boyfriend?" Hally exclaims loudly, earning the attention of the table of girls across from them.

"Well, no, but—" Juno cuts Leanne off quickly.

"Just leave her and her friends alone, Hal." She shakes her head.

"Whatever." Hally smiles. "The Asian is just as good looking."

"Why don't you piss off." Reese rolls her eyes. "They're obviously not interested in getting in your pants." Luna snorts from beside Reese. "Besides, isn't snogging enough for you?"

Hally scrunches her face up. "No." She replies shortly, giggling. Around her, the group of girls smile, and some begin to laugh with her as well. Hally may come off intimidating, however there were some moments where she wasn't that bad.

Juno's too busy studying the boys from Leanne's Maze as they spoke to some boys from other Mazes. She couldn't help but wonder what it would've been like if a boy had been sent into their Maze.

The laughter of the girls around her caught the attention of more than just the other girls' table. Juno quickly adverted her eyes as the boys from Leanne's table turned their attention to them.

She looks down at her unappealing food, then glances back over at the boys from Leanne's Maze, making eye contact with the blonde boy. She doesn't move her eyes from his, and he does the same.

 _Who is she?_ A staticky voice echoed in Juno's head, making her jump in her seat. She grabs the table to steady herself, looking away from the boy. Although the voice was staticky, Juno was certain the person had an accent, and was male. She'd never heard the voice before.

Mr Janson clears his throat at the front of the room. "Good evening, gentlemen, ladies." He speaks quickly. "You all know how this works. If you hear your name called... please rise in an orderly fashion, join my colleagues behind me... where they will escort you to the eastern wing. Your new lives are about to begin." Some people clap shortly, but stop when he looks down at his clipboard. "Connor. Evelyn..."

Juno ignores the names being called, trying to recall if she had heard that voice around. But she hadn't. None of the guards around had accents. And why would a voice in her head be saying 'who is she'? Juno had no idea what was going on, but she's snapped back into focus when Janson calls out a familiar name. "Hally."

Some of the girls gasp, turning to look at Hally. Her face visibly pales, but Hally's excited eyes meet Juno. "Bye bitches." She whispers, smiling.

"Good luck." Leanne whispers back to her.

"Good luck to you too." Hally's eyes meet Juno's and for the first time Juno can see worry in them. It's only for a split second before Hally masks it with excitement.

Janson finishes calling the names as kids let out sounds of sadness from not being called. "Now, now, don't get discouraged. If I could take more, I would. There's always tomorrow." Janson tells them encouragingly. He walks towards the doors to leave. "Your time will come. Go on, eat up."

Juno could tell Kiko wanted to call bullshit at what Janson had said, but kept her mouth shut due to their new friend at the table. None of them wanted to worry her.

They sit in an awkward silence before Leanne stands up. "I'm gonna go see the boys."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lily James   
> as  
> Leanne
> 
> "we just don't make any sense,   
> but still you fight for me  
> i keep repeating,   
> repeating the way we shouldn't be"
> 
> I Like (the idea) Of You - Tessa Violet


	4. The Voice In Her Head

**"I DON'T WANT** to know where those kids go anymore." Reese whispers softly once Leanne is gone. "Because wherever they're going, Hally is too."

"I disagree." Luna says a-matter-of-factly. "This makes me want to know where they're going even more."

"It doesn't matter." Juno spits. "Even if we did know where they were going, it's not like the four of us could do anything to change that." She pushes her tray away from her. "We tried to find out what what was going on and what happened? We lost Vera."

The girls shrink under Juno's stare. She hadn't been like this in a while. The last time she had acted this was, was when the first group had escaped the Maze. That was three years ago. "She could still be alive." Luna mumbles softly.

"Even if she was it wouldn't matter." Juno snaps. "They have her."

Kiko sits up w little straighter. "Okay, but maybe we're just overreacting. Maybe she's alive and she did get brought to a safe-haven?"

Juno shakes her head. "As much as I want to believe that, let's start being honest." She leans her head in and speaks quietly. "We saw bodies. They were unmistakable."

Reese glances around at the guards around them. "I want to go back to our room. We can talk more without being heard there."

Kiko shakes her hear. "What about Leanne? She doesn't know how to get back."

They turn to see the boy Hally had first pointed out, Thomas, getting up and trying to leave the cafeteria to see his friend. "Damn, their group doesn't know how to follow the rules either." Reese chuckles lightly.

Juno looks over at the table where the new girl is. "Well, we might as well go introduce ourselves." She stands up and puts on a happy face.

As they approach the table, Juno hears Leanne say something that changes her mind about her. "I feel like I was pulled out of the Maze just to be forced back into another one." Juno suddenly feels guilty for leaving the girl in the dark about what they've been discussing.

Kiko clears her throat beside Juno, catching Leanne's attention. The teens with their backs to them turn so they're facing them. "Hi." The boy in the blue shirt smiles. "I'm Thomas."

Juno smiles, and for a second she wonders if she looks too friendly. Shaking that feeling off, she introduces herself.

The blonde boy who Juno had made eye contact with earlier speaks. "I'm Newt." The second he speaks, Juno can feel her heart skip a beat. The voice was familiar. It was the voice she had heard in her head earlier. _What_ _the_ _hell?_ The introductions continue and Juno's pulled out of her train of thoughts when the spiky-haired boy introduces himself, then smirks at her. She blushes, although she doesn't know why she is blushing. She wasn't embarrassed by the gesture. It was the whole good-girl act that brought out the blush; the act that she put on for Mr. Janson and his goons.

They spoke briefly about the Mazes they came from, mostly just about if they were from the same Maze and the girls were asked if there was anyone else still here from their Maze, to which they responded no.

Reese turns to Leanne. "We're heading back to the room, Leanne. I'll wait by the door for you so you don't get lost." Reese says, smiling. "Nice to meet you, boys."

"You too." Newt smiles politely, watching Juno intently as she does him.

Once they're out of earshot from their new acquaintances, Kiko turns to Juno. "What the hell was that?" She exclaims. "You're usually the one to talk our ears off!"

"I don't know." She shrugs. "I'm just tired." That was a lie. Juno was the total opposite of tired. She had a bunch of pent up energy that she wanted to release. "I'll wait for her." Juno smiles to Reese. "You guys can head back."

After a short minute of waiting, Leanne met her at the door. They begin to walk down the hall. "That other girl in your Maze, Teresa, was she the girl Thomas was trying to see back there?" Juno asks. Leanne simply nods, not speaking. Juno doesn't prod any further. She could respect that if her new friend didn't want to speak, she didn't have to.

**•••**

The girls were all laying in their beds, waiting for Leanne to fall asleep so that they could talk. Juno was sleeping on the bunk on top of Leanne, so she couldn't see the girl, but Kiko would shake her head every half hour to let her know that Leanne wasn't sleeping.

Eventually, a part of Juno had given up. She still wanted to talk to the girls, but if Leanne wasn't going to sleep Juno would. As her body began to doze off, she didn't fight the sleep that made her lids heavy. It was a dreamless sleep; Juno never dreamt. She actually enjoyed that empty sleep. She didn't need an escape from her world; it was enough for her. Although out of the Maze WICKED was certainly more than enough for her to have to handle, she still didn't wish for dreams. Dreaming was usually a distorted world of the world you wished for, and Juno didn't want to give herself that inkling of hope that some day she may get that world.

"June, wake up." Kiko shakes her in her sleep. "Juno!"

The sleepy girl groans, peeling her eyes open slowly. "What?" She croaks. She knew for certain that she wasn't a pretty sight right now. Pushing her tousled brown hair away from her face, Juno sits up so she's looking down at Kiko, who backs up to stand beside Luna. Reese is still laying in her bed, although awake.

"Leanne just got up and left." Kiko whispers.

"Well why didn't you bloody stop her!" Reese says, a little too loud for Juno's tired head.

"I don't know! I panicked." Kiko says defensively, raising her hands up in defeat. "I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep."

"Whatever." Reese mumbles, laying back down in her bed. "Let the girl explore a little. I'm sure she can handle herself."

"Reese!" Luna scoffs. "I think someone should go follow her." The girl turns to Juno and Kiko. "I vote you two."

"What? Why?" Kiko frowns.

"Well, Kiko, you were a Sprinter in our Maze. You're quiet on your feet." Luna turns to Juno. "And, er..." Luna struggles to find a reason why Juno should be the other to go. "You're not getting Reese out of bed and I'm not athletic or anything."

Juno rolls her eyes as she pulls her hair back into a ponytail. "Whatever. Let's go Kiko." She pushes the door open, surprised to find it unlocked considering what had happened with Vera. "Just one of these nights," She mumbles as they jog down the hall, hoping Leanne sent that way. "I want to sleep through the whole thing."

Kiko smiles. "I know what you mean."

They slow as they spot Leanne. "And not just to sleep the boredom away."

Kiko frowns. "You're bored here?"

Juno shrugs, moving up as Leanne rounds a corner. "All we do is eat and sleep." They stop behind another corner. "We're always confined to our rooms or the cafeteria." They watch as the same thing they saw happens; doctors push bodies under sheets into a laboratory. Although they can't see them going into the door due to being further back. As Leanne gets spotted by Doctor McDonell, Juno nearly jumps up to pull the girl back with them. Kiko has to hold her arm to make sure she doesn't do anything. The doctor shrugs, acting as if she hadn't seen Leanne, and continues on her way.

Juno pushes Kiko down a small side-hall as Leanne begins to turn around. "We need to follow her!" Juno whispers.

"But she's going to get back and see that we're not there." Kiko frowns.

"What if she gets lost?"

Kiko nods in agreement and they wait until the girl passes by them.

They follow her slowly, and after the first four turns, which were right, she makes a wrong turn. She runs right into two guards. Thinking fast, Kiko shoves Juno into a janitor's closet, and they watch through the vent of the door.

"Hey! What're you doing out?" One of the guards bellow.

Juno watches as Leanne turns to run but the men grab her. "We should help her!" Juno says.

"We can't do anything. They would still overpower us!"

Juno's face drops. "I can't make the same mistake I did with Vera."

Before either of them can do anything, Doctor McDonell rounds the corner. "What's going on here!"

"Shit!" Juno whispers.

"Let her go." The Doctor demands.

Neither of the men release Leanne. Juno knows she can't help, but she wants to. "What was she doing out at night?"

They struggle to see through the vent as Kate steps forward. "This is my patient. She suffers from panic attacks. I told her if it ever happens she could come find me."

That was a lie. A good one. Juno was starting to believe that the workers here were trained to be good liars.

"She must have gotten lost."

"Then why'd she try to run?" The second man asks, crossing his arms.

As Kate retorts, grabbing Leanne and pushing her away from the guards, Juno places her hand on the door nob. "Don't." Kiko warms quietly.

Once everyone is gone, Juno huffs out. "Well fuck."

**•••**

When they had returned to their bunks, Reese was already sleeping and Luna was half asleep. Kiko and Juno had agreed that they would tell the girls what happened in the morning, before they left for breakfast.

Now, they sat eating breakfast in silence. Everyone was thinking about Leanne, and what they couldn't done differently. "We fucking killed her!" Reese sets her fork down loudly.

"We don't know that." Juno whispers harshly. "Leanne seemed like the type to put up a fight. She's probably fine." That lie was more meant for herself than for the girls.

"Yeah, we don't know what's going on!" Luna squeaks. "She's probably dead. Or with Vera, wherever she is."

Juno slumps on her seat, then turns to Kiko. She had been oddly silent throughout the morning. "Kiko, what do you think—"

"Shut up. One of her friends is coming over." She whispers quickly, looking down at her food.

Juno sits up a little straighter, wondering which of of them was coming over. Instead of one, two of the boys they had met yesterday sit down in front of them.

Newt smiles at the girls politely, whilst Thomas gets right to the point. "Where's Leanne?"

It would have been easy to tell the truth, but Juno felt the uncertainty creeping up her neck. "We don't know." She lies easily.

 _Bullshit_. The voice —Newt's voice— echoes in her head. Juno jumps up a little in her spot, and in the process she hits her tray, which knocks her drink right into Thomas' lap.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry!" She exclaims, grabbing a wad of napkins to hand to him. She doesn't make eye contact with anyone at the table.

He mumbles a small thank you to her, then dabs at his pants with the napkins. "You really don't know?"

"We woke up this morning and she wasn't in bed." Kiko frowns, and Juno's thankful it was her who responded. Kiko was a good liar. Reese and Luna on the other hand, weren't. Reese would repeat her story a thousand times (and a different story each time, for that matter), and Luna would stutter over her words.

Thomas presses his lips together, but doesn't question them any further. Instead, he stands up thanks them anyways.

Once the two boys are gone, Reese turns to Juno. "Why didn't you tell him the truth?"

"Because we don't know them!"

"They're Leanne's friends." Kiko states. "They should be aloud to know."

"So? Not everyone tells their friends everything. This is Leanne's secret for her to share with them." Juno says sternly. "Not for us to share."

•••

Juno was given too much empty time in this place, which meant she had all the time on her hands to overthink everything.

It was nearing lunch but Juno wasn't hungry. She didn't want to eat the average food the people offered her, and she certainly didn't want to socialize with her friends like nothing had happened. She was tired of pretending like nothing was wrong and living a boring life in this facility. At this point she thought that Janson might as well just call her name tonight at dinner.

But of course, she was forced to make her way to the cafeteria where she was forced to eat the food they offered and listen to her friends talk about what they wondered and hoped the world was like outside this facility.

She faced the door, and almost never took her eyes off of it. She wanted to see Leanne walk in through that door.

And, it was like the Gods had heard her wish. A couple minutes into lunch Leanne came walking in, wearing an unfamiliar blue hoodie and a black eye.

Juno jumps up from her spot at the table and meets Leanne a couple steps from their table after she gets her food. "Are you okay? What happened to your eye?" Juno questions. Leanne didn't know that Kiko and Juno had followed her, and Juno was going to keep it that way. Who knows, Leanne could lie to her about her eye.

"Hey, sorry I disappeared, I wasn't feeling well." Leanne smiles apologetically. "I'll explain later but I have to go see the boys."

"Leanne!" Juno calls, but she's already walking over to the table where the boys from her Maze are sitting.

Juno makes her way back to her table and tells them about the short interaction.

 _You know what happened to her, don't you?_ Newt's voice says in her head.

 _How can we do this?_ Juno tries not to physically frown. She didn't want to attract the attention of her friends, and instead eats her food quietly.

_Answer my question first and I'll answer yours._

Juno huffs out.

"You okay?" Luna asks, concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiles reassuringly. _Yeah. We followed her, but there was nothing we could have done to help her._

Newt's quiet for a moment, before answering. _We're telepathic. Like Thomas and Teresa. We can speak to each other in our heads._

 _Thomas and Teresa can do this too?_ Juno shifts slightly to glance over at him.

 _Yeah, they can. They think WICKED did this to them._ Newt glances over at her at the same time.

_I wouldn't doubt it._

•••

It turns out Leanne was honest with them, and told them what had happened. Juno herself was surprised when her friends started acting shocked at Leanne's adventure the night before.

Juno lays down in bed, and watches her friends smile and laugh at a dinner story Reese was telling about when they're were in the Maze.

 _Newt?_ She tries to reach out. _Newt? Can you hear me?_

_Yeah. Did you try more than once?_

_That was the second time. The first one didn't come through?_

_No. The second one was even a little staticky._ Juno nods, then remembers he can't see her. _What did you want to talk about?_

Remembering why she wanted to talk, Juno rolls over on her side so she's facing the wall. Her friends would probably just think she was taking a small nap before dinner. _What do you think of this place?_

She can almost hear him thinking for a second. _I think that although there are some things about this place that are strange,_ he stops for a moment, _they're working to keep us safe. And Leanne and Thomas are just overreacting about the place being bad._

_Thomas thinks it's bad too?_

_Yeah, he does. Apparently he snuck out last night too._

_Is he a bad influence on Leanne?_ Juno jokes.

 _I think they've both influenced each other into being even more curious than they would be alone_. Newt's voice is calming in her head.

 _Oof. That must be rough, trying to look out for the two of them_. Juno smiles to herself.

 _Eh, it's not that bad. Not when I've got Frypan and Minho with me to help_. It's Newt's turn to joke around. _But really, in the end it's not bad._

 _I believe you_. Juno's voice is soft in his head, and although they had to leave for dinner, Juno didn't want his voice to leave her head. She wanted to hear it again and again, on repeat. She never wanted to be without it. And yes, she knew that sounded cheesy considering she had just met the boy, but she wondered if they were both telepathic for a reason, if WICKED had put them together for a reason.


	5. A New Mess

**DINNER WAS A** little better for Juno. She had picked up an appetite and had actually found herself eating her food instead of pushing it around on her plate.

She was beginning to realize that maybe this place was good in the end. She was grateful for the food and warm beds they had been given. Maybe if her name was called, she would be sent to a better place. Although, she did hope that if that was the case she would be sent to the same safe-haven as her friends, including Leanne and maybe even Newt. She really just wanted to have a close-to normal life from this point on. Of course, she could never have what used to be the norm, because of the virus and WICKED. The dreams she had never allowed herself to imagine were slowly creeping into her mind.

The cafeteria quiets down as Mr. Janson steps in to read the names off of his list.

As he begins to call names, Leanne mumbles to them. "I want to know where the kids go."

Juno wasn't shocked. Of course if this girl had snuck out at night to snoop around she would want to know the inevitable. Juno barely even knew the girl and she had taken a liking to the girl immediately, so she knew that she would protect her new friend at any cost, that cost being her life.

"Don't be a fool." Luna mumbles. "If you try to go you'll get in trouble."

Juno nods, agreeing with Luna. It would be stupid for Leanne to go now. She had already gotten into a fight with some guards, and with her bruised face she would stand out.

"I don't care. I need to know."

"And last but not least, David." Janson finishes up. "Thank you for your attention. Enjoy the rest of your evening." The doors open and the teens called begin to file out.

Juno watches Leanne carefully, studying her as she looks over at the boys from her Maze. It seemed Leanne was also ready to risk it all for her friends. The new addition to the group stands up and mumbles a small "oh no." Juno immediately follows her gaze towards Thomas, who tries to follow the teens but gets stopped. Almost as if he's accepted that he won't make it through, Thomas turns to leave. Instead of leaving, he turns back around and launches himself at the guard. "Shit!" Leanne exclaims, beginning to make her way towards Thomas quickly.

"Lea!" Juno gets up and follows Leanne. She didn't want her new friend to end up like Vera.

Juno stops a couple steps behind Leanne as she pulls Thomas away from the guard. Minho arrives next, helping her while Newt comes to stand at Juno's side. The boys are all yelling at Thomas to stop.

"Control your friend!" One of the guard's yell.

Mr Janson runs back into the room. "What's happening here?" He demands, coming to stand in front of the group. "Thomas?" He asks. No one answers him. "I thought we could trust each other. You know we're all on the same team here." He says, attempting to reassure them.

"Are we?" Thomas asks without hesitation. And damn, Juno thought, he was confident.

Obviously annoyed, Janson presses his lips together in a thin line. Then, without turning to the guards, he says. "Get them to their bunks."

The guards obeyed Janson without a single protest. They almost seemed happy to get to comply. The boys are forced to walk in front of the girls, getting pushes down the hall by two other guards. Juno walks a few paces ahead Leanne.

"Let me go!" Leanne says loudly behind Juno.

Juno turns around and immediately recognizes the guard that has his hand wrapped around Leanne's arm tightly. It was the one that had been tousling with her and had bruised her temple. 

Juno walks in pace with them. "Listen to her, man! You're hurting her!" She says, equally as loudly as Leanne.

Letting go of Leanne, the man goes to grab Juno's arm, making them stop in their tracks altogether. Then, taking her long brown hair into his hand, he pulls it back to tilt her head up to look at him. Juno doesn't look up at his eyes. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of having her scared. She wasn't scared. What was he going to do? Hit her? If he did Juno would heal back up. She was more worried about Leanne than herself. "Look at me." The guard grumbles. Leanne tries to hit his back, but he doesn't stop. When Juno doesn't, he pulls her hair harder, earning a yelp. She gives in, knowing he would only progress further if she didn't. "You don't get to talk back to me." He says menacingly. "Actually, you don't get to talk at all." He tugs at her ponytail harder.

Juno isn't one to get mad, but she is. He wasn't going to handle her like this and get away with it. Up ahead, the boys continue to walk, getting further and further away. Juno looks back up at the man. "Get your fucking hands off me!" She exclaims, even louder than when she had first addressed the man. Working as she had hoped, the boys further up the hall hear her yelling. They run back quickly, and hands and feet fly at the guard, loosening his grip around Juno's hair enough for her to slip out of his grip.

Frypan links his arm through Juno, continuing her on their way towards the bunks. "I'm Frypan." He sticks his hand out for her to shake.

Taking it in her own, Juno laughs lightly. "I'm Juno. But no one calls me that."

"Junie it is then." Frypan smiles.

Juno returns the smile sweetly. It almost shocked Frypan how calm she could be after what had just happened. She didn't even seem to upset. "I know you're trying to distract me."

Frypan's smile almost falls, but he catches himself. "So what if I am? We might as well socialize."

They approach the door and Juno gets shoved into the bunk room without a care. Juno turns to say something to them, but they close the door. "This isn't even my bunk room!" She slams her hand against the door but they walk away. "Bitches." She mutters under head breath.

 _June_. Newt says in her head to get her attention.

She spins around and directs her eyes to Newt, then follows his eyes to Thomas, who everyone is watching.

"What the hell was that about?" Minho asks immediately. Juno wanted to know what that was too.

"You didn't really think they were just gonna let you through?" Newt adds. Of course they wouldn't. They had a procedure here. Juno herself knew that if you wanted something down, it had to be secretive. You couldn't make a scene.

Thomas shakes his head. "Nah, of course I didn't." Reaching into his pocket, Juno watches, intrigued as he pulls out a key card. Juno recognizes it to be the one all the guards wore. A round of exasperating sighs ring through the air. "I'm gonna find out what's on the other side of that door."

"Well fuck me, Thomas!" Juno turns to watch Leanne pull an identical key card from her shirt. "You could've just asked me." Juno had to admit, Leanne was resourceful, but she wondered how the girl had gotten that.

"Right." Newt mumbles, rolling his eyes dramatically towards Thomas.

"Newt, they're hiding something. Okay?" Thomas defends himself. "These people are not who they say they are."

"No, Thomas, you don't know that!" Newt exclaims. Thomas walks further into the room, and the group follows. "The only thing that we do know is that they helped rescue us from WICKED." Newt's voice gets louder as he speaks. "They gave us new clothes. They gave us food. They gave us a proper bed." He stops, then lowers his voice. "Some of us haven't had that in a long time."

Juno wanted to speak up, and side with Thomas. The more she thought about Vera the more she wanted to leave this place. She was just so confused. One second, she felt safe here, than the next she thought she needed to leave. She wasn't sure how to feel.

Not knowing what to respond, Thomas starts slowly. "Yeah, but..."

From the corner of her eye, Juno sees Leanne raise her hand, telling him to stop. "Can you all shut the hell up for just a minute!" She sighs. "You're giving me a migraine." She gently rubs her left temple where her bruises are. "Listen, I'll be honest and say I'm conflicted." Juno watches Leanne curiously from the back of the group. "First of all, I've been in the Maze for three years. They give us beds, food, clothes, showers, and it's nice. For once I'm not surrounded by stinky guys." Juno was happy she hadn't met them when they were in that state. "But Newt, I saw what Thomas saw."

Juno wanted to tell them the same. That she saw what they were hiding. That she saw something, and that they took Vera, but she didn't. She didn't want to intrude in their family fighting.

"They were hiding something. And I want to know who these people are, what they're doing and why they're doing it."

Juno jumps up as the grid from the air vent comes flying out from under a bunk.

"Hey, Thomas." A blond boy says, crawling out from under the bed.

"What the hell?" Frypan mumbles as he shakes his head, clearly done with all the shit doing on. Juno agreed with Frypan, all of this was crazy.

"Who is this kid?" Winston frowns.

"You got it, didn't you?" The boy asks.

"Yeah. Let's go." Thomas gets down to crawl under the bed, but stops before he leaves. "All right, look, maybe you guys are right. Maybe I'm just being paranoid. But I got to find out for sure. Just cover for me." He nods. "I'll be back as soon as I can." He lowers himself to crawl.

"Hey, Thomas?" Leane says, stopping him from leaving. "If you get caught, we're gonna have to save you, and then I'm gonna kill you."

Juno was scared for the boy. As she began to see Leanne in her natural element, around these boys, Juno had begun to see the authority that she held.

"What an idiot." Leanne sighs, dropping down onto the nearest bunk.

Newt turns to face Juno."Juno, right?" She nods, assuming the others don't know about their gift. "Sorry you had to be pulled into this mess." Newt smiles apologetically.

"You can all call me June." She says, eyes roaming the room before they land on Newt. "And it's okay. My life was getting a little boring."

"Boring is good." Minho points out. "It means no drama."

"Yeah, well after living in a Maze for six years, you get used to drama." She shrugs, sitting down beside Leanne on the bunk.

"You were in your Maze for six years?" Winston's eyebrows raise to his hairline. Juno nods, fixing her ponytail. "I don't know if I could survive six years with Frypan's cooking." Winston says.

"Hey! You better be grateful!" Frypan exclaims as Newt shakes his head, chuckling with Minho. "My food kept you alive." Juno smiles at the interaction, but it made her miss her friends. And as her mind began to think about them even more, she worried.

"Yeah, yeah." Leanne laughs. "Let's not scare June away." She smiles. "With Teresa gone right now, I need her around."

**•••**

Juno stayed seated on the bunk, watching as the mood shifted in the room. The light-spirited jokes had ended and were replaced with worrying.

Juno found herself watching Newt pace nervously around the room.

 _Stop pacing. You're making me dizzy._ She watches as he stops for a second, before continuing to pace.

 _Stop watching me then._ Newt turns his head to smile at her sweetly.

_I'm watching you cause you're worrying me._

_I'm fine._ He looks away from her.

_No. You're making me worry about Thomas, not you. I don't even know Thomas. You do, and you're pacing._

He stops his pacing and frowns. _You're not worrying about me?_ His voice is whiny.

 _No. You're not in any danger right now._ Juno rolls her eyes, moving to lay down on the bunk.

Leanne comes to lay beside her, squishing her up against the wall. "You look worried." Leanne whispers. "Which is weird, considering you don't even know Thomas."

Juno turns her head to face Leanne. "I'm worried because all of you are worried." The shrugs. "You know him, so if you're worrying it means there's something to worry about, right?" Juno asks.

Leanne presses her lips together into a thin line, nodding. "Thomas can be reckless."

Their conversation had ended there, and the wait for Thomas continued.


	6. The Escape Plan

**EVERYTHING WAS SILENT**. No one spoke, they were all too worried. Juno jumps when the grid for the air vent flies out from one of the beds, and sends Leanne off the bed.

Juno stands up quickly. "Sorry." She mumbles Leanne.

Juno watches as Thomas hastily pulls Leanne up. "We gotta go. We gotta go right now." He repeats.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Minho asks loudly.

"What do you mean, "We gotta go?"" Newt asks over Minho. Everyone asks questions over one another, confused by Thomas. Juno almost wants to yell at them all to shut up, then for Thomas to explain, but she wouldn't.

Thomas runs towards the door quickly, then turns back around to face them. "They're coming. Come on. We gotta go." He takes a sheet off a bunk. "They're coming for us." Then, he begins to tie a knot around the handle to keep the door shut. "Paige. She's still alive." Thomas says

"Ava?" Juno frowns. What isn't Leanne telling her. The others didn't seem surprised that she knew this information. What did they know that Juno didn't?

"Who's she?" Newt asks, confused by his two friends.

"Ava." Thomas repeats, out of breath.

"Ava?" Frypan raises his eyebrow. Someone needs to explain. They can't just repeat each other.

"The big boss at WICKED."

"Will you just turn around and talk to us?" Newt says calmly but loudly.

"It's WICKED!" He yells, making Juno jump. He turns around to face them. "It's still WICKED. It's always been WICKED." Thomas says quickly. He then grab a mattress of the bunk frame and pushes it up against the door.

Juno runs her fingers through her ponytail nervously. Her heart was beating in her ears, making it hard for her to hear them. She felt like she was going to faint. She had to go back for her friends.

"Thomas." Newt walks up to stand beside Thomas. Then, he calmly speaks. "What did you see?"

"Other people from Mazes, hanging up with tubes attached to them." He speaks quickly, moving to the bunk where the vent is. Juno rests her hands on the wall, stabling herself. Hally. Vera. Her friends. Every single other person from her Maze who had already been called, they were probably there. "After we're called, we don't leave." Then, he waves them over. "We gotta go quickly, come on." With Thomas leading the way, the teens get into the vent quickly.

Juno watches them get in, but doesn't move. Minho approaches her. "Are you—"

"The other girls from my Maze. I have to go back for them." Juno interrupts him.

"What are you saying? You can't!" Frypan exclaims.

"But they're my family. The only family I have left. I can't leave them."

"You have to." Minho pushes Juno lightly towards the vent.

Sighing, she crawls in behind Leanne. Minho gets in behind her. "You better not be staring at my ass." She grumbles to Minho behind her. She wasn't in a good mood anymore.

"There's nowhere else to look." Minho chuckles, trying to lighten the mood in the vent. Juno huffs, but ignores him.

"Minho?" Leanne whispers from ahead of them.

"Yeah?"

"Stop flirting with my friend."

As they reach the end of the vent, Juno is helped out of the vent and into a standing position by Thomas.

"Come on, come on." Thomas helps the others after her. "Okay, let's go." He says when everyone's out.

"You guys go ahead. There's something I gotta do." Aris tells them.

"What are you talking about?" Thomas asks.

Juno was curious about Aris. Why would he leave them now? When they were going to escape?

"Trust me, it's important." Aris responds shortly, not giving anymore information than that. "You guys wanna get outta here, right? Just go."

"I'll go with him." Winston says.

"Okay, Winston, go! Go!" Thomas says. Quickly, the two climb back into the vents. "Come on." He says to the rest of the group.

"You sure we can trust this kid?" Minho asks as they begin to run. Juno agreed with Minho. Aris was a stranger. But, she was too, so she didn't say anything.

"You don't want to know where we'd be without him." Thomas responds.

When they turn the corner, they run right into Doctor McDonnell, who seems surprised to see them. "What are you kids doing out?" Just as she asks this, the alarm system turns on.

"Kate," Leanne pushes past Juno to the front of the group. "We're leaving."

"Is there any way I can help you?" Juno isn't surprised that the doctor would help Leanne.

_Can we trust her?_

Juno looks over to Newt, who's watching her. She nods. _This is the doctor who helped Leanne._

"We need to find our friend, Teresa."

The doctor nods. "I know where they're keeping her!" She begins to walk down the hall. "Follow me!" She calls out.

Leanne's the first to start walking with Kate. Juno's quick to follow, while the others are more hesitant. They follow anyways.

Juno walks up to walk alongside the two women. "Why are you helping us?" She asks for the group.

Turning a corner, Kate looks back at the teens. "The only reason I came to work here was to help kids." She shakes her head. "I didn't know we'd be experimenting on them. Using them."

Juno felt a sense of sadness. Some of the people working for WICKED might be working for them out of fear, or because they needed to so they could survive. She felt bad for those people, but what they were doing was still unacceptable.

Doctor McDonnell runs ahead of the group, then turns a corner. "Freeze! Stay where you are!" A guard yells from the end of the hall.

The doctor lets out a yelp then turns the group around.

"Why are they shooting at us?" Frypan yells. "They shouldn't be shooting at us." Juno agrees with Frypan as they run away from the guards.

"Minho!" Juno hears Leanne call out behind her, making her and the other spin around to see what's happening.

"What the hell are you doing?" Thomas yells. Minho begins to run towards the corner of the hall, then launches himself at the guard as he turns the corner. The guard hits the wall, then falls to the group.

They group runs back to Minho, looking down at the guard. "Well fuck." Juno exhales. "That was hot." She almost blushed, but that feeling is sent away when she sees Minho blushing. Instead, she feels proud of herself for making him blush. Leanne had talked about these boys, and one thing she had said about Minho was that he was always teasing them.

Juno watches the boys share an incredulous look. Newt turns to her. _Really?_

 _What?_ She shrugs innocently.

Doctor McDonnell ushers them forwards and Thomas grabs the gun from the unconscious guard. "Okay. Let's go. Come on. Let's go."

Although they only ran for a minute or two, Juno's bones ached. She wasn't made to run, but she had a small voice in her head telling her that if she was sticking with this group, she would do a lot more of it. Doctor McDonnell stops in front of a door and swipes her keycard, unlocking it.

"Act like you're forcing me to do this." She mumbles before pushing the door open a bit.

"Dr. McDonnell, are you here to..." The other Doctor stops when Leanne pushes Kate into the room. "Wait, wait. Okay, okay." The other doctor says, backing into the room.

"Where is she?" Thomas asks loudly.

Juno walks into the room, watching as Leanne pulls open a curtain and reveals the dark-haired girl she had seen pass in the halls once.

Thomas runs over and Minho points the gun up at the doctors, threatening them. "Get down!"

"Get down and give me your hands!" Leanne says to them. The doctors stick their hands out and Newt and her tie them together quickly with bandages. Frypan and Juno watch out the hall for guards. "Just do what I say and no one will get hurt." Leanne speaks calmly and clearly behind Juno.

Juno and Frypan share a look when guards begin to turn the corner and approach the door. "Guys? They're coming! Where do we go?" Frypans yells.

"Frypan! Juno! Move!" Newt yells, flipping a table over to push it against the door. "Get back! Get back!" He says, ushering them away from the door. Juno turns around the room, and spots the glass window. She looks over to Thomas, who seems to have the same idea.

"Okay, we gotta get outta here!" Leanne yells to them.

"Everyone stand back!" Thomas says. He grabs a stool from beside the bed and hits the glass. "Come on! Newt! Help, help!" With both of them holding onto stools, they break the glass.

"Ready? Go, go, go!"

Teresa covers the sharp edge with a blanket, and Thomas jumps over. He helps her over, picking her up so she won't cut her feet.

Newt jumps over, sticking his hands out to help the next person over. Juno grabs his hand quickly and swings her legs over the ledge. _Thanks._ Her voice is a mumble in Newt's head.

She can feel the glass shards under her shoes, but luckily it doesn't cut through. Juno moves towards the door, but Thomas steps in front of her. "Stay behind me!" He tells them, opening it. The group is about to go when Thomas stops, faced by a large guard. Without hesitation, Thomas shoots the guard, electrocuting him. "Shit." He mumbles. Juno watches with wide eyes at the guard's body shakes violently on the ground. Then, coming to his senses, he starts to move forward. "Okay, come on!"

They begin to run down the hall quickly, passed the guard on the ground and around a corner. "I hate running." Juno breathes out from beside Leanne. It was true. She never ran in her Maze, and certainly hadn't planned on running today.

At the end of the hall is a closed door. Thomas gets there first, and uses the card he has to try and unlock it. The screen turns red, denying him access. "Shit." He mumbles, continuing to try. "Come on! No, no, no!"

Juno turns to Leanne, who searches her pockets for her keycard. Her pockets turn up empty. "I don't have my keycard." She mumbles. "It must've fallen out."

Juno turns to look down the hall, and sees Mr Janson at the end of the hall, walking towards them. "Oh fuck."

"Thomas!" He continues to walk towards them, surrounded by guards.

Thomas raises the gun, walking down the hall towards Janson. "Open this door, Janson!" He yells at him, loading the gun.

 _What does he think he's going to do?_ Juno frowns. _Shoot all those guards before they shoot him?_

 _Shut up, June._ Newt's voice snaps in her head. Juno's surprised by the tone. She had only heard Newt yell once, and that was back in the boys bunk room when Thomas wouldn't tell them anything. She had assumed Newt wasn't the type to get mad and lash out.

"You really don't want me to." Janson shakes his head, raising his hands.

"Open the damn door!"

"Listen to me! I'm trying to save your life." He says to them. "The maze is one thing, but you kids wouldn't last one day... out in the Scorch."

Juno frowns. She wished she could remember what the outside world was like.

Janson and the guards continue to walk forward. "If the elements don't kill you, the Cranks will." Similar to them, Thomas continues to walk forwards too. "Thomas, you have to believe me. I only want what's best for you."

"Yeah, let me guess. WICKED is good?"

Janson lets his hands fall to his side. "You're not getting through that door, Thomas." As Janson says this, the screen turns green and the door mechanisms begin to make noise. Behind them, the door opens with Aris and Winston on the other side. Juno cracks a relieved smile.

"Hey, guys." Aris says to them.

"Come on!" Winston waves his hand for them to move forward.

"Thomas! Come on! Let's go!" Newt calls out to him.

Juno slides past the door and Newt, glancing around the hall for any other guards, but there isn't any in sight.

She turns around just in time to see Thomas slide under the closing door and into the hall with them.

"Damn, have you ever played baseball?" Leanne asks sarcastically.

Juno glances over at her with confused eyes. She had no idea what Leanne was talking about.

Minho helps Thomas up as Aris smashes the control pad. "Move! Move!"

"Thomas, what's going on?" Teresa asks, still confused.

"Come on." Newt says, beginning to run alongside Juno, who just wanted to run back to her bunk room and crawl into bed.

The run down the hall and out into the large room where they would first see when they arrived. They ran by the crates that sat in piles around the dimly lit room.

They all stop in front of the large doors and Thomas pulls the lever, making the door shift open.

No one moves, and although every bone in her body was telling her not to, Juno starts jogging out of the building first. "Come on! We can't just stand here."

At first, the running wasn't bad. But Juno was quick to realize that the running wasn't bad because she was running on a cement pad. The second she stepped off the cement, she regretted every decision she had ever made. Running in sand was hard. Juno kept twisting her ankles as she ran. She couldn't imagine Leanne running in this, for the girl had been telling her about how she had twisted her ankle in her Maze. They run up a sand dune, and Juno wants to stop and collapse. Her feet and joints ached. So, when they stopped running over dunes and stopped to lay flat on the ground, Juno didn't protest, and drops down beside Teresa.

"Who are you?" The girl frowns.

"I'm June." Juno musters a small smile. Teresa nods, not bothering to ask any more questions.

They watched the men on four wheelers search for them, and only when they would start to get close would the group continue to move, still staying low.

Far enough that they could stand, the girls ran in the front of the group. Not far away, Juno can see a building buried under sand. It seemed Teresa had thought the same thing, for they all ran towards it.

They stop in front of an opening in the building. "Some shelter?" Leanne asks.

Teresa shrugs, running down the sand and into the building.

Behind her, Juno can hear the boys yelling at them to stay with them over the howling wind. She doesn't bother listening, and instead follows Teresa in with Leanne on her heels.


	7. Close Calls

**THE BUILDING IS** dark. Sand has piled into the building, and it smells of something rotting. Outside, boys give in and run down the sand hill into the building to stand next to the girls.

With his flashlight, Minho looks around at the room around them. It looks big, with piles of rubble laying around. "Where the hell are we?"

"A mall, it looks like." Leanne exhales beside Juno. Minho frowns at her, not understanding. "A place where people would go shopping, to get clothes, and other objects."

"We gotta go." Thomas breathes heavily.

"Thomas, stop." Teresa says sternly, staying planted in her spot. Juno felt bad for the girl, because she was out of the loop.

He turns to look at her. "We gotta keep moving."

"Teresa deserves an explanation about what's going on." Juno says just as sternly as Teresa. If she emitted confidence, she could do anything. That's what she used to tell herself. She was definitely on the outside of the group, and although she didn't want to work her way to the inside, she did want to be friends with them.

"It's WICKED." Thomas says calmly. "It's WICKED. They lied to us... We never escaped." Thomas speaks clearly, like a leader. But Juno didn't think he was the only one who showed leader-like skills. Leanne certainly had authority, but both Newt and Minho showed skills of leadership as well. "Me and Aris, we found bodies. Too many to count."

"What do you mean?" Teresa frowns. "Dead bodies?"

"No, but they weren't alive either." Thomas repeats what he had told them earlier. "They had them strung up. With tubes coming out of them. They were being... they were being drained." Juno feels her heart skip a beat. She already knew this, but the reminder, that Hally was hanging up in that laboratory made her feel lightheaded. "There's something inside of us that WICKED wants. Something in our blood. So we have to get as far away from them as possible."

"Okay. So, what's the plan?" Newt says, seemingly the only person thinking strait. "You do have a plan, right?"

"Yeah. I don't know."

Juno felt a rush of anger through her veins. She had followed Thomas, a random stranger, out the facility where they kept them away from the outside danger, just to learn he had no plan.

"Well, we followed you out here, Thomas... and now you're saying that you have no idea where we're going... or what we're doing." Newt exclaims.

"Wait. Janson said something about people hiding in the mountains." Aris says slowly. "Some kind of resistance or army." Finally, someone thinking things through.

"The Right Arm." Thomas confirms. "The Right Arm. If they're really against WICKED, maybe they can help us."

"People. In the mountains. Mountain people. That's your plan?" Newt questions, unconvinced.

"It's the only chance we have."

"Hey, guys." Winston calls out before Thomas can elaborate. "Check this out." They turn to see his silhouette crouched close to the ground. "Minho, give me a light!"

They walk over and Minho lights up the flashlight, showing footprints.

"Someone's been down here." Minho concludes.

With Minho walking in the front with a flashlight, the group follows the footsteps until they reach a glass garage door.

"Come on. Open up." Minho says after having looked in through the glass. Juno helps raise the glass door.

She finds another flashlight and flicks it on, illuminating the room. Piles of clothes and sheets lay around the room. Children's toys, photos, memories.

"Looks like people lived here." Frypan points out. Juno wonders if the entire world is like this; living in the dirt, hiding, suffering.

"Where are they now?" Newt questions suspiciously. No one answers him. Juno wasn't sure if she even wanted the answer.

"Let's pack some of this stuff up." Thomas says, pulling a jacket on. "Anything you think you might need. We'll split up, see what else we can find." People nod throughout the group. "Meet back here."

Juno rummages through the piles of clothing around the room. She changes out of her restricting jeans to a pair of loose khaki trousers and pulls a navy blue jacket over her shirt.

Once she's done, she turns to Leanne, who's also finished changing. "Grab a bag, let's go look around."

Juno nods, grabbing a backpack off the ground and following Leanne out of the room, in the opposite direction Minho and Thomas had gone.

"Are you okay?" Leanne asks out of the blue and they continue to walk.

Juno shrugs. How was she supposed to answer this question? "Yeah."

"No, I just mean cause earlier, when Thomas was telling us about the... bodies, you didn't look too good."

Juno scoffs. Of course she didn't look too good. She had been chased at gunpoint out of the one place that had told her they were going to keep her safe, leaving her friends in what may have been WICKED —according to Thomas—. So of course, Juno didn't expect herself to get out of that and feel great. She picks up a blanket and rolls it up. "Lea, the girls in that bunk room we shared were the last girls from my maze. That means that all of the other ones were called, and either brought to that place or somewhere far worse." June stuffs the blanket into her bag, zipping it up. "And I just left the last of the only people I knew for six years back there. I just left them."

Leanne doesn't respond, and instead finds a first aid box. Juno copies her friend's gestures, dropping the conversation. She wanted to ask if Leanne was okay, but felt that it would be out of line right now. They were more worried about finding someplace safe. Juno stuffs a baseball cap into her bag, then continues to search for other stuff that seems useful. She had no idea what she was searching for — she didn't know what the world held for them about there. Everything was new to her now, and that's what stressed June out the most. Her anxiety had been built on the foundation of the unknown. And that was a lot of unknown for Juno.

A shimmer in the corner of her eye catches her attention. Juno picks up a beautiful gold necklace; a butterfly locket. She opens the locket, but it's empty. Shutting it, she clasps it around her neck, tucking it under her shirt. She didn't know why she wanted to keep it, it was just an empty locket, but she did anyways.

Glass shattering pulls Juno from her trance. She looks a couple meters over at Leanne to see a broken picture frame at her feet. "You good?" Juno asks, standing a couple meters away.

"Yeah..." Leanne breathes.

Juno nods, moving to look at a table of objects. Most of it was useless. She jumps when the lights turn on, but her heartbeat slows quickly, happy that she can actually see what she's looking at.

She walks further down the room alongside the table, eyeing the objects. She could hear Leanne behind her, and the crunch of the glass under her shoes, but ignores the girl.

Leanne screams loudly. Juno almost brings her hands to her ears but forgets when she sees the man. His skin was pale and purple veins were creeping onto his face. Juno watches Leanne grab a lamp off the table beside her to strike the man across the head.

Leanne lunges for Juno, and both girls grab onto each other as they run towards where the others are. Juno's blood pumps to her ears as they continue to run. Leanne was quick, and she found herself being tugged by the girl. Juno glances over her shoulder to get a look at where the man is, but she runs right into someone. Startled, she lets out a short scream. The person grabs onto her. "It's just me." Minho says to her, pushing her forward to continue running.

She turns the corner first, spotting the rest of their group, who watches them run towards them. The four of them yell at their friends to run.

Juno could hear the cranks howling behind them, but she refused to look back at them. It would only slow her down. They run down the halls quickly, then run up the escalators.

"Guys, what the hell are those things?" Winston yells. Juno wondered that too, but she didn't want to stop to find out.

"I don't know. Just keep going!" Thomas yells.

Once they've reached the top, they turn left to run further away. "It's the cranks Janson was warning us about." Leanne yells from beside June.

June bumps into Frypan when they stop all of a sudden. She peaks around his shoulder to see a crank blocking their path. Aris runs towards it, hitting it in the legs and making it fall.

Juno watches Thomas and Teresa climb up the next escalator, and realizes their ground has been separated.

"Go around!" Thomas yells them.

Juno's eyes search around them quickly. "This way!" She begins to run further down the hall, finding a staircase that brings them up to Thomas and Teresa. "Newt, come on!" She yells to the lagging boy.

They couldn't stop running, but they couldn't find a way out. Around June, they yell back and forth trying to figure something out.

Juno stops for a moment to glance down another hall, but barely gets a glance around the corner before Newt's hand on her back shoved her forwards. His hand slips from her back, but she assumes he's still running right behind her. A loud bang proves her wrong, and June turns around to see a crank on top of Newt. "Newt!" Juno swings her leg forward, kicking the crank off Newt and into the glass railing. The crank crashes through the glass and tumbles off the ledge, onto the floor beneath them. 

"Thanks, June." She pulls him up off the ground.

They run further down the dark halls, then Juno is shoved down a skinny cement hallway. "Guys, where are we going?" Frypan yells.

"Somewhere far from them!" Leanne responds. No one actually knew where they were going.

Every door they passed, they tried to open. And every door was locked. Juno could hear the cranks get closer. They weren't going to get away easily. Whoever had last been here had made sure that everything was well barricaded.

"It's a dead end!" Minho yells ahead of Juno.

June swears under her breath. One last door, and it was also locked. But they were trapped. All the cranks were already coming down the hall, and all the other doors were locked.

Winston steps in front of the ground, shooting the cranks with a gun he had picked up from the facility. At least that would buy them some time.

The boys continued to try and ram the door. Juno feels useless in the moment. She wouldn't be strong enough to ram the door, and she didn't have a gun to shoot any cranks. She could only watch and hope that they would manage to get the door open. Finally, Frypan pushes Thomas aside to ram his shoulder into the door. The door swings open with a bang. "It's open!"

Juno gets shoved through the door by someone, but at this point she didn't even know who. There were so many people around her trying to run that she didn't know who was who.

Juno waits for the rest of the group to run through the door, Winston at the rear. It's almost like it happens in slow motion; Winston trips, and the cranks get their hands on him. They're greedy. They tug and pull and rip at Winston to try and pull him away. Juno steps forward to kick the cranks hands and heads that peek through the crack of the door, but the second the cranks begin to tear at the skin on Winston's stomach Juno feels lightheaded. Blood coats his stomach and spots fill her vision.

She stumbles back as the try to pull Winston away. She rests a hand on the wall, blinking quickly to try and regain her vision. Her body felt cold —although they had just done a lot of running— and her chest felt tight. The entire situation felt unreal; Juno could barely hear any of the yelling behind her.

A hand on her shoulder pulled her back to reality. Her vision, her hearing, it all came back like a wave.

 _Come on, Junie._ Newt's hand wrapped around her upper arm, pulling her away from the wall and away from the door.

She could see that Winston had been pulled away from the door, and Leanne and Frypan were helping him run. Minho and Thomas were trying to barricade the door.

June found herself watching Winston, but the second he turned and she got a glimpse at his bloody shirt she found the spots reappearing in her vision. She looks away quickly and moves towards the pile of rubble where the others were hiding. She joins them under the alcove, pushing herself to the back corner.

She leans up against the cement and closes her eyes. It took every bone in her body to not faint. She tries to steady her breathing, but she feels like she can smell the blood. Instead of losing her hearing, she feels like it's been heightened. She feels like the cranks are howling in her ears.

Juno presses her head up against the cement, pushing against the cement with her head. The pressure was a relief. She could feel something. But as the cranks didn't stop howling, she knew this would be a long night.


	8. Dear Winston

**JUNO WAS SURPRISED** when she was woken up by the sound of someone speaking. When had she fallen asleep? She didn't open her eyes. The sun was already too bright for her closed eyes. A hand shakes her shoulder, but she swats the hand off. "I'm awake." She grumbles, refusing to open her eyes. If it wasn't for the fact that she knew she would have to get up, Juno would fall back asleep right away. She didn't want to keep moving. 

"Are they gone?" She hears Newt's voice ask.

"Yeah, I think we're safe for now." Thomas responds.

He thought they were safe, for now. Juno wished she had stayed back at the facility. Even if it was WICKED, she would rather stay there and sleep in her comfy bed.

"Okay, we should get moving. Let's pack it up." Thomas says, but June doesn't move. "Aris, come on. Fry, Winston. Let's go." He looks over at Juno, who still hasn't bothered to open her eyes yet. "June, come on."

Juno rolls her closed eyes, then opens them. She didn't want to move; the sun was too bright, her bones ached from sleeping on the ground and she was hungry. But of course, they wouldn't stop for one person. So instead of being left behind, because she was sure Thomas would force the other to leave even if she didn't, she got up and slung her backpack over her shoulder.

They moved slowly through the destroyed city. It wasn't easy because of the piles rubble and trash that littered the roads. The crumbling buildings housed growing plants, the roads had begun to be filled with sand, and cars lined the roads like they had just been left in a traffic jam.

The further they walked, the more destruction they passed. It was shocking to Juno. She couldn't remember anything about the world, and this was the first impact it had on her. Was the rest of the world like this? She dearly hoped not, but a small part of her thought it was.

"What the hell happened to this place?" Frypan asks while they walk down the middle of the street.

"I don't know. It doesn't look like anyone's been here in a long time." Newt responds.

"I hope the whole world's not like this." Aris says, voicing everyone's hopes.

"Hang on, stop." Thomas says, making the group stop and quiet down. "Do you hear that?" They look up onto the sky, and the noise gets closer. "Get down! Everybody, hide! Hide! Hide!" They look around for a spot to hide, and quickly settle on a large fallen slab of cement.

Juno shuffles under a slab of cement beside Frypan. Some of the others hide under a piece beside them, separated by a large cement wall.

They watch from underneath as two helicopters and a berg overhead of them, searching.

"Oh shit." Juno mumbles. They were still searching for them. But why? What was so important about them?

"They're never gonna stop looking for us, are they?" Minho asks from the other side of the cement.

Once the little search party is farther out, the group decides its best to keep moving. But the further they move, the more difficult it becomes to walk. Piles of rubble block their path and they find themselves having to climb them.

Juno was not in shape. She didn't do any kind of physical activity in her Maze, ever, so walking all day long was not her strong suit.

"Everyone good?" Thomas asks from the front of the group.

"Yeah." Winston mumbles, clutching his stomach. Juno makes the same mistake she made earlier, and glances over at him. He now had bandages wrapped around his stomach, but there were still patches of blood on his shirt and seeping through the bandaid.

"Oh my God." She mumbles, placing her hand over her mouth. Teresa glances over at her worriedly, but June waves her off with her free hand. Her chest tightens and her breathing becomes heavy. A wave of nausea passes over her, but she swallows it down.

"Hey, guys! We need a little break." Leanne calls out as she helps Winston sit down.

"We need to keep moving." Thomas responds, stopping with the rest of the group to look down at the two seated teens.

"No, we need to stop pushing each other to the point where we can barely walk." Leanne responds in a snarky tone.

"Thomas, let's just take a break." Juno sides with Leanne, huffing. "Not everyone's in great shape, you know." Juno grabs onto Minho's arm to keep herself stable from toppling over. Her cheeks are flushed pink and her breathing is heavy.

"We have to get far away from those people." Thomas argues.

"Just five minutes, Thomas." Minho says, helping Juno move to a rock on which she can sit. Thomas gives in, and the teens sit on rocks for a break.

"Are you okay?" Minho asks Juno, who's laying down.

"Yeah... yeah." She responds, waving her hand for him to not worry. "I just need a minute to breath."

 _Are you sure?_ Newt watches Juno carefully

 _Yeah. Totally fine._ What was wrong with her? Why was she acting like this? Why now? Juno closes her eyes.

•••

If Juno ever cried, she would have cried when they started to walk again. The little break helped, but she couldn't shake off that nauseas feeling. Once they could overcome the mounds of rubble, they headed for the hills of sand. 

Juno might have cried again when she stepped onto the sand. It hurt her joints to walk on the sand, and the sand filled her shoes and found its way between her toes, but walking in sand was better than running in it.

"A little further, guys." Thomas says encouragingly as they climb up the side of the dune, close to the top.

A little further until what? The top of the dune? The unknown destination? Juno wasn't even sure they would survive. Screw the cranks, they would probably die of dehydration.

When they reach the top of the dune, the sight is like every other; crumbling buildings, sand, and mountains in the far distance.

"Those mountains, that's gotta be it." Thomas points to them. "That's where we're going."

"That's a long way off." Newt sighs.

"Then we better get moving."

Juno didn't want to move. She wanted a break. She wished they had a car, so they could sit and drive instead of walk the distance. Or maybe that they had hijacked a berg so they could fly, but that was way out of their skill set.

Before they can begin to walk again, Winston falls down onto his side and slides down the hill a little.

Leanne's the first to drop to her knees beside him. She unzips his sweater and peels the shirt back but Juno looks away before she can see anything else. Even just the thought of the blood was making her dizzy. "He's hurt pretty bad." Leanne tells them.

Juno can hear Winston's struggle to breath, and she almost felt the same way.

"What do we do?"

"Shit." Thomas mumbles, taking a step back and looking out at the mountains. They were so far away, and even if they did make it, they couldn't be certain that the mountain people existed. If they did, would they even help the group?

Juno glances back at the ground when her view of Winston is blocked by Newt, who crouches down beside the boy. "Winston, can you hear me?" He asks.

Winston wasn't doing well. Juno didn't even have to look at him to know that —because she didn't—. Just hearing his voice, his ragged breath, and what the others were whispering about while they searched for supplies. But Juno couldn't be the judge of if he would make it or not. She wasn't a doctor or anything. Hell, she had never really dealt with someone else's blood before. She could barely handle her own, fainting every time she had a bloody nose.

The group had found enough supplies around the crumbling buildings to make Winston a makeshift gurney. It was enough for the teens to take turns carrying him. Juno didn't want to seem helpless, so she would pull her weight to carry Winston for a little while. She made sure not to look down at the boy. Even seeing his paling face would send a wave of panic over her.

The more they walked, the more destruction they saw. A large bridge, little houses, tall buildings, there was a lot of variety. It was almost too overwhelming to Juno. The little community she had known for six years of her life, versus this huge world she knew nothing of.

The weather had begun to change. But they didn't get rain, instead they got wind. And although the wind didn't sound bad, it was. The sand around them flew up into the air, whipping them viciously in their faces and arms. Juno felt bad for the boys carrying Winston, all of whom stubborn and not switching out with any of the girls or Aris. To shield their faces, they pulled up their hoods, wrapped scarves around their faces or pulled up their neck warmers. Juno was grateful she had found a scarf and had thought to pack it.

"Gotta find shelter!"

It didn't take long to find shelter, but it felt like forever before the wind settled down. So, they found themselves huddled low to the ground, waiting it out.

Only when the wind finally calmed down did the teens allow themselves to relax a little. Teresa walked out to look out at the mountains, and some of the others were engaging in small conversations. Juno watches them all, glancing across the shelter to where Thomas and Leanne are sitting. Juno can tell that the two are having an argument. Thomas storms off angry angrily go see Teresa and Leanne turns her head, making eye contact quickly with Juno. June looks away quickly, not wanting to seem like she was listening in. She wasn't, because she couldn't hear them from where she was, but Leanne didn't know that.

"How's it looking?" Newt yells up at Thomas.

"It's a little further." Thomas responds.

"That's not very convincing." Newt frowns.

Juno scoffs, pressing her back against the slab of cement. "Nothing he says is convincing." Newt rolls his eyes at her before following Leanne away from the shelter.

"Really?" Minho raises his eyebrows at her questioningly.

"What? It's true." She shrugs. It was the truth. Thomas didn't know what he was doing. "It's not like he actually has a plan."

Frypan waves his hand at her to stop. "June, can you at least let us believe he has a plan?"

She sits up a little straighter, watching the boys sitting across from her carefully. "For what? For you to get your hopes up, then be let down?" She watches as Frypan's face drops. Minho glares at her, and Aris opens his eyes from his sleeping position to frown at her. "You're right. I'm sorry, that was harsh." She hangs her head low. "I'm sure he does have a plan. Or at least part of one." She doesn't look back up at the boys. A rush of guilt seeps through her. These boys all trusted Thomas, they had their hopes in him. They still thought that anything was possible if they all worked together.

Juno looks away from the sand she had been playing with at her feet as Newt and Leanne walk back under the shelter. Both of them looked fine.

Juno drops the sand from her hands and brings her arms up to cross them over her chest, then brings her knees up to her chest to curl into a ball against the wall.

She was on the outside of the group and it showed. They were welcoming, and they certainly didn't keep her out of the loop purposely. But sometimes, there were little things they said that Juno didn't understand. At first, she didn't think much of it. They had all been stuck in a maze together, of course they would be closer. However, the longer they walked she could obviously tell she was on the outside.

Beside her, Leanne begins to sit down. Before the girl can get seated, she lunges towards Winston. "Winston!" She yells.

Juno whips her head up to see Leanne and Winston scramble for the gun lying in the ground. In the fight, the gun is fired towards the sand. She stands up quickly as Thomas and Teresa run down to join her side, all watching Leanne extend her hands towards Winston. "Give me the gun, Winston." Quickly, she yanks the gun from his hand as he drops to the ground and tosses it over to Frypan.

"What happened?" Thomas asks.

"I don't know. He just woke up and grabbed the gun and then he tried to..."

"Winston, are you okay?" Thomas walks over to Winston, bending over next to him to help him. Winston coughs roughly, then throws up a dark substance, his blood.

Winston lays on his back and the group shuffles towards him. He lifts his shirt and the bandages, showing them his growing wound. "It's growing... inside me." Juno pulls her eyes away, shutting them tightly. "I'm not gonna make it."

Leanne drops to her knees next to the sick boy. "No, no. We're not losing you. We're gonna find a nice place, and I'm gonna fix you up, and—" Winston interrupts her.

"Please, Lee. I don't wanna turn into one of those things"

Juno's heart aches for Winston. His last wish was to die, and it seemed that his friends understood that. Newt shows his understanding first, gently taking the gun from Frypan.

"Wait, Newt..." Thomas says as Newt approaches Winston, but Newt doesn't stop. He only stops when he's standing beside Winston. Newt crouches down and places the gun in Winston's hand on his chest.

"Thank you." Winston swallows. "Now, get outta here."

 _Let's go_. Newt mumbles in her head, grabbing his bag and walking away from the shelter. Juno copies him, grabbing her pack and moving quickly. She speeds to catch up to him, and the two walk alongside each other as the others say their goodbyes. Newt sniffles beside Juno, but looks away from her when she tries to catch his eyes. Juno moves her hand slowly to her side, then slips her small hand into his. Neither look at each other, but Newt interlocks their fingers softly. And selfishly, Juno wished this moment wasn't happening under there circumstances.

When the sound of a gun going off rings through the air, Newt stops walking beside Juno, stopping her as well. As a sign of support, June squeezes his hand tightly. She may not have been considered close to the rest of them, but she was going to do her best to keep them together. She didn't want to lose anyone else along the way, unless it was herself.

But the future was uncertain of what it held for Juno, and it wasn't clear whether of not it would come to that sacrifice.

•••

As the sky grew dark and the air grew cold, night fell upon them. They had started a fire, and were all sitting quietly around it.

Juno found herself laying on the hard ground, although the longer she was there the less it hurt. It was almost a relief on her muscles.

"I thought we were supposed to be immune." Minho starts, sitting cross-legged on the other side of the fire.

"Not all of us, I guess." Teresa says.

"If Winston can get infected... we should assume so can the rest of us." Newt adds.

"I never thought I'd say it... I miss the Glade." Frypan says with a tear running down his face.

Juno longed for her Maze as well. She missed the green grass and lush trees. She missed the blue skies and the walls that bordered them. She missed being with all of _her_ friends, and wished she was sitting around a fire laughing with them instead of crying here with Leanne's friends. She even missed the sound of the shifting gears when the Maze doors opened in the morning and closed at night.

And that night, Juno dreamed of her Maze. She found herself walking through her Maze, watching Hally fix one of the crumbling huts while Kiko yelled at the younger girls to get out of the kitchen. She saw Reese, wandering the Community searching for a small job while Luna was sent to each Leader, trying all of the different jobs out so she could pick one that matched her skill set. Juno watched the younger girls run through the fields of green while she laughed alongside her friends. For one night, she lived the easy life she would never see again.

But like all good things, her dream had to come to an end and the sun had to rise. The sun was hot against their skin as they began to walk through the desert once again. Clad in a scarf and a baseball cap, Juno fought her thirst and her hunger to continue their trip. They wouldn't last much longer; water and food were scarce.

Although there were many negative thoughts crossing her mind, Juno had to focus on the positive. They were no longer walking on sand, and the terrain had flattened out, making it easier for them to keep moving.

However, Juno's head hurt. Her vision blurred and her body swayed as they walked; she could barely walk in a straight line, and continued to bump into Leanne's shoulder.

Much of the group walked in little packs, separate from each other and quiet. From time to time, small conversations would begin amongst them, but most of the time they would die down quickly.

"In your Maze, what did you do?" Leanne asks Juno suddenly. Both girls walk at the back of the group.

"I was pretty much a teacher." June shrugs. It was the easiest way to explain her job. "You see, the kids arriving in my Maze were young. I taught kids the rules of our Maze, how to read and write, and once they reached the age of ten, I placed them into their work section."

"You got a lot of young kids?" Teresa twists around to ask. It seemed Leanne's question had caught the attention of the other teens, who listened in carefully. They were interested in learning about other mazes.

"Yeah." Juno nods. Inhaling deeply as if it hurt to speak, she began to tell them about her maze. "The youngest girl we got was Mia. She was only five when she arrived." Juno could see the surprise on their faces, and she doesn't blame them. It was cruel of WICKED to send such young children into a maze. "Originally, I was supposed to just work in the gardens. But that wasn't any fun and we got lots of young kids that didn't know much about anything." She grimaces. "We were fifty-eight in my Maze, and more than half of us were ten years old or under."

"Less people working than there were in your Maze." Aris points out.

Juno shrugs. "The little kids would help out when they weren't being taught. It was after ten that they would go work full time instead of being taught." The brunette smiles. "My Maze was beautiful." The others are surprised when Juno says this. "It was tropical. Palm trees, grassy fields and a sandy beach on a beautiful blue coloured pond we had." Juno chuckles. "We asked for paint, and the creators sent some to us and we painted the Maze walls."

"Were there any monsters in your Maze?" Thomas asks curiously.

"Yeah..." Juno presses her lips together. "We had phantasmals." Juno wanted to stop there, she didn't want to continue speaking about her Maze. She wanted to keep everything to herself; to let it live on in her mind only. But it wouldn't. "We called them that because they were phantasms; they were unreal, an illusion." The others listen quietly, intrigued. "When we found the bodies, they had red stings down their arms, and down their legs. A lot of the older girls believed they were chimeric beasts."

"Chimeric?" Leanne asks.

"They had body parts of more than one animal." Juno shakes her head. "They were weird... and mysterious. They always returned the bodies before the doors opened, leaving them for us to bury. They never ate them."


	9. A Step Closer

**WHEN THE TEENS** decided to give in to their fatigue, Juno found herself slumped up against Newt as the sky grew darker. And although everyone was tired, and none of them spoke, they found themselves all sitting upright, watching the stars. Juno yawns, shifting her head further into Newt's shoulder.

 _Tired, Junie?_ He slips his arm around her shoulders.

 _Very_. She smiles up at him softly before resting her head on his shoulder once again. She wanted to press pause and freeze time. She wanted this moment to play on repeat until the end of time.

 _You should sleep_. Newt says quietly. But Juno didn't want to, and he could sense that. If she slept and they stayed up, Juno would feel like she was missing out on something, even she didn't. She didn't want to shut her eyes and be excluded, and Newt was beginning to see this jealousy climbing out.

Newt shrugs his arm off of her shoulders and stretches his legs out. _What are you doing?_ Juno turns to watch him as he lays back on the ground.

 _Going to sleep. What else would I be doing?_ He sends her a small smile.

He closes his eyes and Juno watches him annoyingly; of course he would be this stubborn when she wasn't about to tolerate it. Huffing, June falls to lay beside Newt. "You're so annoying." She whispers quietly, rolling into his side.

Newt chuckles softly. "Yeah, yeah." His arm snakes around her back. _Go to sleep, Junie._

 _Goodnight, Newt_.

•••

The storm brewing in the cloudy sky did not wake Juno up. Neither did the hard ground beneath her shoulders or Newt shifting next to her.

June was only woken up when Thomas was shaking her foot awake. "Hey. Hey. Get up." She hears Thomas' raspy voice say. "Newt, get up. Come on, let's go. Frypan, Aris. I see something."

Juno opens her groggy eyes quickly and sits up to look at where Thomas is pointing; in the distance, they can make out lights at the base of the mountains.

"What is it? What..." Newt says, stopping when he sees them.

"You see that?" He points to them. "It's lights."

"We made it." As Newt says this, a loud clap of thunder sounds behind them. Then, it happens again and they see lightening hit the ground. Juno is yanked up roughly by Thomas, who hands her her bag quickly.

"We gotta go." Leanne speaks nervously. "Come on. Come on, let's go." As more lightening starts to hit the ground, the teens begin run towards the lights.

"Let's go! Hurry! Go! Run!" June hears people yell as they run from the lightening.

"Keep moving!"

The faster they run, the come along cars parked at random. The building isn't far now, but the lightening is close.

"We're getting closer! Keep going!" Thomas yells to them.

Minho lags behind June, pressing his hand against her back to get her to run faster. "Come on, June!" As the lightening gets closer, Minho gives June a final push before it comes down to hit them. June is blown away from Minho and falls to the ground with a hard thump to her head. A loud ringing sounds in her ears as the rest of the sound is blocked out. June doesn't manage to stand up, but does manage to twist her head and look over at Minho, who lays immobile on the ground not far from her. With all of her energy, Juno pushes herself towards Minho. It takes all her might to ignore the ringing in her ears and focus her eyes on him. Ok the distance, she can hear the others yelling, but she can't make out what they're saying. "Minho..." she mumbles, shaking the boy. "Minho?" He doesn't respond and she feels her throat swell up. Juno continues to mumble Minho's name as Newt pulls her to a standing position.

 _It's okay. It's okay_. He repeats in her head as he slips his arm around her waist, keeping her from falling to the ground.

Through her blurry vision, Juno can make out Leanne coming towards them, helping Newt out until they make it to the door, where Leanne stops and holds it open. She could hear the others yelling, although it sounded like a distant mumble.

The room is dark, but Juno can sense that it's large. She's shoved further into the room as the other file in with Minho in tow.

Juno can't see what's going on, but the ringing in her ears quiets so she can at least hear them.

"Come on, come on." She hears Leanne mumble. It didn't sound like Minho was okay. "Minho?" Although she knew she shouldn't, Juno wanted to push her way to the front of the group to see the boy. "Stop shaking him." She hears Leanne scoff, then silence. Silence. _Silence_. It's almost too long before Leanne speaks. "He's alive." Sighs if relief ring through the air.

A groan from the injured boy peaks Juno's attention. "Are you okay?" She hears Thomas ask.

"What happened?" She can hear the confusion in his voice. Again, Juno wants to push her way to the front but she doesn't; she wouldn't want to intrude.

"I think you got struck by lightning." Thomas tells him.

A moment of silence passes before Minho speaks. "Oh." This time, a shorter silence. "Wait— is June okay?"

Juno laughs from the back of the group. "Yeah." Thomas and Leanne shuffle aside, making room for June crouch next to Minho. "You get hit by lightening and you ask if I'm okay." She rolls her eyes, pushing his shoulder gently. "Idiot."

"Come on, let's get him up." Thomas says.

"Cockblock." Leanne coughs, making Newt and Frypan laugh.

The heat rushes to her cheeks as Juno brings her gaze to the ground, backing up. She doesn't speak, but a wave of thoughts run through her mind. She can't help but hope that Newt doesn't begin to think she likes Minho, because she does not.

Pushing the thoughts to the back of her mind, Juno squints to try and see the dark space. Wherever they were, it was a step closer to The Right Arm.

"Nice and slow. Okay."

Juno takes another step away from the group, still flushed in embarrassment. She glanced up at Teresa, who scrunched her nose up in disgust. "Hey, what's that smell?" Flicking her flashlight on, Leanne and Teresa jump back as a crank lunges forwards at them.

Teresa turns to flash the light around them. "Begins you!" She warns. Juno turns around to see another crank lunging up at her. "Oh shit!" She yells, jumping into Frypan and grabbing onto his arm to keep herself from falling.

"Oh, my God." Flashing their flashlights around, they're able to see multiple cranks thrashing around, all chained down.

"I see you've met our guard dogs." A female voice says. They turn towards the voice and a light turns on behind the woman.

The closer she gets, the better Juno can see the girl. Big brown eyes stare at them. "You guys look like shit." This girl couldn't be much older then them, standing a few feet away clad in torn clothes and sporting cropped brown hair.

"Well thanks, I try." Leanne mumbles sarcastically from the front of the group.

"Come on. Follow me." The doe-eyed girl takes a step forward before turning to look at them once more. "Unless you want to stay here with them."

The group begins to move forward, following the girl away from the cranks. She slides a door open and leads them through it and into a much large room. Lights hang from the ceiling, lighting it dimly. People stand around fires seeking warmth, chatting quietly. Their conversations die down and they watch the group of teens pass by.

"Come on, keep up. Jorge wants to meet you." She calls as she climbs up the stairs on the other side of the room. "

"Who's Jorge?" Thomas asks.

"You'll see." She responds. "No one's come out of the Scorch in a long time." They walk past other people who watch them pass. "You've just got him curious." She shrugs. "And me, too."

Newt glances behind himself. "Anyone else starting to get a bad feeling about this place?" Juno copies his gesture, glancing over her shoulder to see the people from the fires now following them.

 _Okay yeah, I agree._ Juno nods to him.

 _Just stay close, June._ Newt says reassuringly. _Everything will be fine._

 _Sure it will._ Juno rolls her eyes. _You literally just said you were getting bad vibes, so don't tell me it's about to be fine._

"Let's just hear him out. See what he has to say." Thomas reasons with them. They follow the girl up another flight of stairs and into a building with lots of knick-knacks and big windows.

"Jorge, they're here." The girl says to a man by the windows, listening to a radio. Juno glances over her shoulder to see all the people who were following them walk into the room.

"Do you ever get the feeling the whole world's against you?" He turns around to ask them. The man is older, probably late forties or early fifties. Her smiles at them, but Juno doesn't think it's a friendly smile. It seems more like a business smile. He steps forward. "Three questions." He walks closer, stopping to get himself a drink. Juno holds her breath as he takes his time. "Where did you come from? Where are you going? How can I profit?" When no one answers, he adds. "Don't all answer at once."

"We're headed for the mountains." Thomas speaks for the team. "Looking for the Right Arm."

The people around them laugh. Jorge smiles. "You're looking for ghosts, you mean."

"Question number two. Where did you come from?"

"That's our business." Minho replies. Juno holds her breath again. They weren't going to take no for an answer; she could already tell.

Hands pull at the teenagers suddenly. Juno lets out a yelp as they're pulled away from each other.

Thomas struggles against a much larger man and gets pushed forward. "Hey! Get the hell off me! Get the hell off me, man!"

The doe-eyed girl who brought them in grabs a metal scanner and walks towards Thomas. "Shut up, you big baby." She takes the contraption and scans Thomas' neck.

"What is that?" He asks.

She pulls away to read something on it. "You were right." She tells Jorge. Juno frowns. What could he possibly have been right about that she would already know of? Were they being watched out in the Scorch?

"Right about what? What is she talking about?"

"I'm sorry, hermano. Looks like you're tagged." Jorge looks back down at the contraption. "You came from WICKED." He hands it back to the girl. "Which means... you're very valuable."


	10. Another Escape

**JUNO ALMOST WANTED** to tell the other that she had told them so, but they were all in a bad mood already. She was annoyed, but didn't voice her opinion. June knew that Thomas didn't have a real plan, and now they found themselves here, hanging from the ceiling by their feet over a large hole, which they couldn't see the end of in the darkness.

"Good plan, Thomas. "Just hear what the man has to say."" Minho mocks Thomas. "Really working out for us."

"Shut up, Minho." Thomas responds to Minho, rolling his eyes. At least it looked like he did to Juno.

"You shut up, Thomas." Leanne snaps. Juno looks over at the red-faced girl. "You got us into this mess." She can't tell if Leanne's red face is from the blood rushing to her head of it it's red from anger. Maybe it was both.

"Enjoying the view?" Jorge asks, coming out from the shadows.

"What the hell do you want?" Leanne asks, obviously fuming.

Juno lets her arms hand loosely; her head was beginning to hurt and her feet tingled. She just wanted to be let down, and to go back to sleep. She couldn't help but wonder how long they had slept before Thomas woke them up - it couldn't have been long. Only a couple hours, maybe.

"That is the question." Jorge steps close to the edge. "My men want to sell you back to WICKED. Life has taught them to think small." He tells them. "I'm not like that. Something tells me that you're not either."

"Is the blood rushing to my head, or is this shank not making any sense?" Minho asks. Another word Juno didn't recognize, but could at least infer what it meant. The longer she spent with them, the more she realized that they had created their own slang in their Maze. Earlier in the day, she had heard Frypan call Thomas a "Greenie". Only after asking Newt what it meant did she really understand.

"Tell me what you know about the Right Arm." Jorge demands lowly.

"I thought you said they were ghosts." Newt frowns.

"I happen to believe in ghosts." He looks towards Newt. "Especially when I hear them chattering on the airwaves." He walks around to rest his hand on a lever. "You tell me what you know, and maybe we can make a deal."

"We... We don't know much." Thomas tells him.

He pushes the lever and Juno feels the pressure at her feet give for a moment before it's pulled taut. June groans. Now her ankles hurt even more.

"Okay! Okay, all right." The teens yell in surprise.

"They're hiding in the mountains." Thomas says quickly. "And they attacked WICKED."

"They got out a bunch of kids. That's it. That's all we know." Leanne finishes for him.

Jorge takes a step forward, ready to ask another question. But he retains his question when someone else begins to speak. "Yo, Jorge." A large bald man steps out of the shadows. "What's going on?"

Jorge smiles politely. "Me and my new friends were just getting acquainted." He answers. "We're done now."

"Hey, wait. You're not gonna help us?" Thomas asks, sending the other man into confusion.

"Well shit." Juno mumbles to herself.

However, it seems Jorge is a quick thinker. "Don't worry, hermano." Jorge smiles. "We'll get you back to where you belong." He turns around, beginning to walk away. "Hang tight."

The bald man watches them for a moment longer before leaving the group.

"Okay." Leanne mumbles to the group after a minute of silence. "Someone push me."

"Pardon?" Newt frowns, looking over at her.

"Push me so I can get to the lever." She says, turning her head to Minho, the closest one to her. "Minho, ready?"

"Yeah." He grunts, swinging her body back and forth to get closer to the girl. Then, she feels his hands on her back as he pushes her forward. Lea stretches her arms and hands out as far as she can, but misses the handrail.

Juno swings her body behind them to help push Minho closer to Leanne. After Minho pushes her, Leanne swings back toward Thomas. The boy reaches out to push her harshly.

Leanne yelps, missing the bar by a couple feet and swings back towards them. "Not my ass, Thomas!"

"That doesn't matter right now." Juno whispers harshly. It didn't matter. If they didn't escape, WICKED was going to get them. "Just focus on getting to the lever."

"Come on, Minho." Newt says as Lea swings back towards Minho. "Push her harder!"

Finally, Minho pushes Leanne hard, but Teresa swings in front of her by accident. "Shit!" Lea curses loudly, body checking Teresa towards the bar.

Acting quickly, Teresa grabs onto the bar. "Yes! Nice, Teresa!" Leanne smiles.

"Teresa, hurry!" Thomas whispers. Holding onto the handrail with one hand, and reaches one hand out to pull the lever, dropping them so Teresa is on the ground.

Juno watches as Teresa takes off the rope and extends a metal bar to Leanne. Teresa moves to help Thomas and Leanne works at getting Frypan down.

Once Thomas is down, he extends his hand towards Juno. Stretching her arm out towards him, the two link hands and Thomas pulls her onto the platform. "Careful." He mumbles, pulling her further onto the floor so she doesn't slip off.

Thomas helps her untie the bindings and stand up. "Thanks." Juno sends the boy a small smile.

With everyone now standing on solid ground, they prepare to leave. Before they can make it to out of the room, the bald man from not long ago stops forward and cocks his gun.

"We're not trying to cause any trouble, okay?" Thomas raises his hands at the front of the group. Juno watches worriedly from beside him. "We just got to get out of here."

The man smiles, and Juno gets a bad feeling. "Is that so?" He raises his walkie-talkie to his mouth, still grinning. "Janson, I got 'em for ya." Juno's throat tightens; they were trapped. "I'm bringing 'en down. Don't shoot us." After finishing his message, the man takes a step forward. "Come on. Let's go." No one moves forward and the man rolls his eyes. "I said let's go." His tone is growing annoyed. He takes another step forward and Juno feels Thomas shift beside her. Then, the boy takes a chance and moves shoves the man's arm quickly so that the gun isn't pointed towards them. The gun is fired towards the ground and the man looks up at them in shock. The group moved forward to attack the man but he's able to push them back and reload the gun. Thomas extends his arm in front of Juno as the man raises the gun to point it right at him. "You little bastard."

Juno's breath gets caught in her throat and her eyes widen as a gunshot rings through the air. Quickly, her eyes flicker over to Thomas, frowning when no signs of any injury seep through his shirt. She looks over at the man, who stands still before falling forward to the ground.

Behind him, the doe-eyed girl stands with her gun raised, putting it down after a moment and nodding. "Okay. Come on." Once again, no one moves when they're told. "Come on! Let's go!" She raises her voice.

Juno follows the girl closely beside Leanne, who sends her a couple glances. June ignores her and continues to move forward. As they run, music begins to blare through the old stereo system in the building.

They run up a flight of stairs and run into Jorge, who had a bag in hand. It seemed they were ready to leave too. "Brenda! Hurry!" He speaks quickly, leading them through the halls of the building. "We don't have much time! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" He comes to a halt in front of two big windows and pushes them open. Behind them, a large empty space taunts them between the building they're in and another across from it. A single wire runs between the two.

"You gotta be kidding me." Frypan mumbles.

"I don't think he is." Juno mumbles.

"Is now a bad time to mention my fear of heights?" Leanne's voice shakes and Juno glances over at her to see the brunette's face paling. Her hands shakes as she runs them through her hair nervously.

"Plan B, hermana." Jorge tells Lea. "You kids wanna get to the Right Arm? I'll lead you to them." He points to them. "But you're gonna owe me." Then, he pulls a cord from the ceiling, seemingly attached to the wire outside, and jumps. "Follow me!" He yells from outside.

"All right! Let's go!" Brenda starts pulling the ropes down from the ceiling for the teens.

Juno is nudged forward, but she stops to glance back at Leanne as the girl begins to panic. Newt pulls the scared girl to the side.

 _You go ahead. I got her._ Newt speaks to her, making quick eye contact before turning back to Leanne.

Frypan shakes his head. "This is crazy." He glances between Thomas, Minho, Teresa and Juno, his eyes landing on the last girl. "Junie, you go first!"

June rolls her eyes. "Whatever." She steps up towards the ropes hanging from the ceiling.

"You wanna hold it like—" Brenda begins, but Juno shakes her head.

"I got this. I don't need help." She loops both her hands through the cord and wraps it once. Taking a step closer to the edge, Juno doesn't hesitate to jump. Her hair whips around her face as she flies between the buildings. She wasn't scared, but she does not bother looking down; she would be scared if she did look down.

The rush of air comes to an end just as quickly as it had begun, and she lands on her feet beside Jorge. "Damn, that was fun." She smiles to him.

He laughs. "Enjoy that one, cause we're not going back for seconds."

June moves to the side as Minho arrives behind her quickly. "That was crazy!" He exclaims loudly.

June smiles as he moves towards him, although it's not a real smile. The little ride was fun, but that wasn't the purpose. "Are you good?" He frowns.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" The question bothered her. Anytime she was asked if she was okay, it made her doubt herself. Did she not seem capable? All these thoughts of self-doubt run through her head, but she forces them down as Aris and Teresa soon land next to them.

Juno moves deeper into the room as they wait for the last of their friends to arrive. She watches Leanne comes to a halt in the building, sitting through the loop of the rope with her eyes clamped shut. Leanne doesn't open them as Minho helps her down. He leads towards the side of the room as Newt finally arrives, rubbing his hands together as he drops the rope. June had begun to realize that he did that when he got nervous. Just like how when they got nervous Minho would run his hands through his hair, Thomas would rub at the back of his neck, Frypan would mumble words under his breath and Teresa would scratch at the top of her hands. They were small signs, but June had picked up on all of them. She had also quickly learnt that Leanne was easy to read — she was overemotional and tended to let things slip. However Juno didn't doubt the girl could keep a secret.

Jorge stands up tall beside her, drawing June from her thought. "We've got to start moving." He tells the teens.

Leanne seems to pull herself together quickly. "What about Thomas and Brenda?" She walks away from Minho and towards Jorge.

The older man eyes Leanne carefully and Juno doesn't blame him. Lea was a wild card; you never knew what you would be getting with her. "Brenda knows where to go."

Juno bites her lip nervously. Maybe that's what her slip-up was. The lip biting. Although if she thought about it hard, she didn't think she did it often.

"So you just expect us to trust you?" Leanne shoots, her voice cold as ice.

"Leanne!" Teresa snaps, unable to tolerate the stubborn girl. "This is not the time! Jorge and Brenda have helped us get out of there, now we have to go before they try to come down here."

Leanne exhales loudly. "Fine. Let's go."

Juno didn't want to keep moving, but her feet moved before she could think anything through. For she knew her mind would not be able to find a good reason to stop. WICKED was hunting them, and if they wanted to live they would have to stay two steps ahead. She knew it would mean being hard on herself, but that wasn't even a sacrifice for Juno anymore; it was a daily routine. This was one big treasure hunt, and they were the treasure.


	11. Rings of Purple

**TWO HOURS OF** walking felt like two days to Juno. Her muscles screamed for a break, however she could never give them one. They had run through buildings, up and down stairs, and yet Juno still didn't find herself enjoying the movement. She didn't think she ever would. This lifestyle wasn't for her — she used to relish in the feeling of the sun on her skin as she played with the girls in her Maze, but now she hated the sun. She used to run around and play tag, but now the running was tiring. Now, everything was draining.

When Jorge finally told the teens they could rest, Juno was the first to collapse against a wall. She let her legs give out beneath her and her eyes grow heavy. However, Juno couldn't find sleep. The looming question of when all this running would stop kept her awake. Could they really escape WICKED? Because it seemed that every step they took forward, WICKED was already ahead. Unlike them, the organization had ressources; bergs to fly above and track them down, people who were trained in combat, actual food and water to eat and drink (she would be lying if she said she wasn't hungry — but no one would know, cause she wouldn't speak up).

Around her, her friends' breath grew heavy as conversations died; everyone but her was asleep. _Lucky_ _assholes_ , she thinks to herself.

A small murmur almost makes her think otherwise, until she realizes it was only Newt talking in is sleep. She can hear a single name, but she can't make out what it was. June sits up in her spot and strains her ears. Newt mumbles against. "Elliott." He mumbles. "Elliott." He repeats the name again. "Don't leave me. No. Don't leave me." His voice is filled with pain and for a moment Juno wonders if she should reach over and wake him up, but she doesn't. "No. No. She can't be gone. Come back."

Juno reaches her hand out to place it on his arm, but Newt startled awake before she can do so. "What? What's wrong?" He mumbles.

"Nothing." Juno whispers, shaking her head softly. "You were just talking in your sleep."

For a moment, Newt looks up at her face, his bottom lip between his teeth. Then, he speaks. _Can't sleep?_ He frowns when she shakes her head, then waves his hand for her to get closer. _Come_ _here_. Juno shuffles closer to him and lays down beside him. She turns on her side and Newt pulls her to his chest and slings an arm around her waist lazily. And, in the warmth of Newt's arms, June is able to fall asleep.

•••

Juno was absolutely tired of being woken up by yelling, but it seemed that the cycle would never end.

"Get up! Get up!" Leanne yells for them to stand. Juno is yanked to her feet, her once groggy eyes now fully open. The sound of a helicopter rang through the building. "Get away from the windows!" Following her instructions, they all come to rest their backs against the wall farthest away from the windows, where the light from the helicopter won't reach them.

The helicopter was thorough, but quick. In a matter of minutes the helicopter was gone.

"We have to get moving." Jorge says as the helicopter turns around to make another check.

Groggily, the teens follow Jorge out of the room. None of them wanted to, of course, but it had to be done.

June walks closely beside Newt. On his other side, Leanne shuffles forward. Before Leanne could turn her face away from them, June catches a glimpse at Leanne's puffy red eyes and the trail of tears down her cheeks. Looking back at the ground, June shrugs it off. She wouldn't question Leanne about it. She would be stepping out of line. They had known each other for days. Juno couldn't even remember how many days anymore.

Slowly but surely, and with Jorge's nagging, the group of teens began to move faster. The break from chaos that they all longed for was not any nearer than before. Juno couldn't help but think that their break from chaos just kept getting further and further away, but she wasn't going to ask anyone. What would she even ask? When are we going to stop running from WICKED? That would be a stupid question that none of them knew the answer to. Secretly, they all wished it could be answered, but no one would ever dare say that aloud — each thought they had to be strong for the others.

Even past the buildings, Jorge wouldn't let them slow their pace. He spoke of a passage, through the mountains. Behind that, there would be a city. He explained that there were multiple tunnels through the mountains, and Brenda and Thomas must be taking another one.

Once they reached Jorge's passage, the entrance was tight. To get in, Juno had to get down on her hands and knees and shuffle forward slowly. "I feel like I'm back in the air vents all over again." Juno grumbles. It was true; if she ignores the smell of dirt and the gravel digging into her palms, she could almost pretend she was back in WICKED's facility.

"We should be out soon enough." Jorge tells her reassuringly. He wasn't wrong; another minute of shuffling forward and they were finally able to stand up.

June stretches her back as she takes in the passage - now a wide, tall tunnel. The ground dirt, and the walls and ceiling solid rock.

"Let's get moving." Jorge nods for them to follow him further into the tunnel.

Juno hangs in the back of the group, walking quietly beside Minho. She watches Leanne speed-walk to catch up to Jorge and walk beside him.

"She's interrogating him." Minho explains.

Juno snorts. "She's not the trusting type?"

Minho shrugs. "She's complicated."

The girl laughs. "I can tell. I've only known her for a few days but I can tell."

He nods to her. "I guess it's true, we've only known each other for a few days." Minho chuckles. "I feel like I've known you forever."

Juno smiles. "Trauma does that to people." She says sarcastically. "We have bonded over running."

"Well, I wouldn't say that." Minho returns a smile, shaking his head. "You're not one to run, are you?"

"Only if I have to." She jokes. "Which seems to be twenty-four seven."

Their conversation ended there and June was grateful it did. Speaking felt unnatural. She wanted to walk in silence and she finally got the chance to do so.

There wasn't much scenery around for June to look at while they walk, so she kept her eyes on the ground; partly to make sure she didn't trip. The dirt on the ground turned to stone, uneven and jagged.

And of course, as the silence expanded Juno got caught in thought. The tension in the group was heavy, it weighed them all down. Everyone longed for the answers they couldn't get. The questions sat heavy on their tongues and begged to be heard aloud, yet no one would ask. June was beginning to doubt herself — to doubt everything she knew. At first, she wouldn't dare let herself hope. Even now, she didn't hope for much. Maybe food and water, a little rest, but nothing more. Nothing more because she couldn't bear the disappointment of another loss against WICKED. The organization was cruel and interminable. They pushed and they took everything from the people until they were left exposed and vulnerable. WICKED did this purposefully. They knew that if they tore away everything the people knew, eventually they would give in. And looking around her group, Juno realized they all looked ready to give in. Their eyes were all shadowed with rings of purple, and their shoulders heavy with the weight they all carried. Those lost of left behind haunted the group like phantoms. A cloud of darkness hovered over the group, and it grew larger and larger until it threatened to rain down on them. When it did rain, it would not be rain, it would be blood.

Caught in thought, Juno almost doesn't hear Frypan and Aris' yelling at the front of the group. _Almost_. The commotion was enough for the teens to leap into a run.

"Cranks!" She could hear them yell. But of course it was, what else would it be? She doubted WICKED would be wasting their time searching the tunnels Jorge spoke of.

Jorge picks up a large stick off the ground to whack the crank away from them, but it seemed more cranks had been awakened. Juno runs harder. She can hear the cranks howling behind them. The cranks weren't close, but knowing their luck, the monsters would catch up.

The rocky ground was hard enough to walk on, but running was even worse. Juno found herself having trouble running on it. Below her, her ankle rolls and her weight drops. She catches herself on her hands and knees. Newt stops to pull her up by her arms. A crank grabs onto his food and pulls him back. Newt falls to the ground and struggles against the crank, who has a hold on both his arms.

Juno is pulled back from them by Leanne and Jorge pushes the two even further back as he goes to swing his foot towards the crank. The crank is pushed off Newt and is sent crashing into the other cranks behind him.

Newt is helped up and the running begins again. "Are you okay?" Leanne yells to Newt.

"Yeah." He tells them.

Juno watches the boy instead of the ground below her. "Are you sure?" Juno asks worriedly, watching as he rubs his arm.

"I'm sure, Juno." He tells the two girls quickly. _Don't_ _push_ _it._ His tone is annoyed in her head, and Juno frowns. She didn't know what she did to upset him, but she didn't want to upset him anymore so she didn't continue on.

They reach the end of the passage and run into a metal door. "What the hell?" Frypan exclaims, turning to Jorge. The older man struggles with a loop of keys on his belt.

As he sifts through his keys, the cranks approach. Nervous glances are thrown between the teens. Leanne is the first to take action, lifting a heavy rock and tossing it with both hands. The rock crashes into a crank's chest and sends him backwards.

Jorge finally finds the right key and the door swings open. "Quickly! Go, go!" Jorge yells at them, shoving each teenager through the door.

Juno stumbles through the door and moves to the side for others to walk through. Jorge pushes the door shut with Leanne's help and pushes down on the lever, locking the door.

Standing beside the door, they can hear the cranks pounding on the door, yelling and howling for help.

"Everyone okay?" Jorge looks around at the teenagers, making sure everyone is uninjured. They all nod slowly. "We better get moving then."

Juno feels dripping on her knee. Looking down slowly, she sees blood dripping off her knee and down her leg. Averting her eyes from the small cut and swallowing down her irrational fear, Juno shrugs to a worried Minho when he asks her if she's okay.

"It'll be fine. Don't worry."

"When we get more supplies, I'm going to want to clean your knee, just to make sure you don't get infected." Leanne says reassuringly from behind them. "You know, I get told I'm the clumsy one, but _damn_ , Junie, you can't run for shit."

Juno rolls her eyes and ignore Leanne, although she's grateful for the girl's joking; it seems to help take June's mind off of the blood.

"Sorry about the cranks back there." Jorge tells the kids as they climb up the rocks, trying to get to the top of the rocky hill. They had only been walking for five minutes, but it felt like five hours. The blood on Juno's knee dribbled down her leg, drawing her attention to it every couple of minutes. It took everything in her body not to throw up, but she was managing. "Last I'd checked, that tunnel was fine."

"Hey, at least we're all alive." Aris shrugs, knocking down a couple rocks. "Sorry!" He says as they fall down, narrowly missing Frypan beneath him.

"Come on, man!" Frypan exclaims. "I don't want to die because a rock fell on me."

Aris rolls his eyes. "You wouldn't die."

"Well I would be hurt." Frypan shoots back.

Newt scoffs. "You're exaggerating, Fry."

"Exaggerating?" Frypan screeches. "I just don't want anyone dying or being injured from this point on!"

"Someone better knock on wood before they jinx us all and we all die." Minho grumbles from the back of the group.

Juno makes it to the top of the hill, and turns to look down at them. "You're going to jinx us, Minho. Not Frypan."

Panting behind Juno, Leanne shakes her head in annoyance. "Y'all better stop talking about jinxing us."

One by one, they make it to the top of the hill and stop to stare at the desert below them. It wasn't much different than the landscape on the other side of the tunnel; beige mountains and flat sand lay ahead of them. Juno was excited for the flat sand — _if_ they got that far.

"We're going to have to take the mountain path. It should be safer." Jorge concludes after a minute of looking down at the terrain.

"Safer? From what?" Leanne frowns. "Definitely not cranks."

Jorge turns to look at the teens, more specifically Leanne. "There's been whispers about a group of people, living in the mountains beyond us."

"You're talking about the Right Arm, right?" Minho steps towards Jorge. "Not another group?" Juno holds her breath as Jorge scrunches his face up.

"Sorry, hermano." Jorge shakes his head.

"You didn't tell us this." Juno glares at Jorge. "Why didn't you tell us about this?" He should have told them. Warned them. Maybe they would have come more prepared. Of course, Juno was kidding herself. More prepared with what? The trash laying around the abandoned buildings they left behind?

The older man starts walking towards a small path, barely visible. It leads up higher onto the side of the mountain. "If I had told you that we might be ambushed by a bunch of women, would you believe me?"

"A bunch of women?" Frypan squeaks.

Minho scoffs. "Please, you think a bunch of girls could take us?" Juno opens her mouth to retort to Minho, but Jorge beats her to it.

"I think Leanne, Teresa and June alone could take you." Jorge chuckles, walking up the path at the front of the group.

"I'm insulted." Minho grumbles.

Leanne leaves Juno's side to follow closely behind Jorge, beside Minho. She watches amusingly, fully knowing Leanne was going to say something about the whole ordeal.

Leanne follows closely behind Jorge. "I'm insulted, Minho." She nudges his shoulder with her own.

"I think we'd be pretty equal, but I don't know about other girls." Minho shrugs, rubbing his shoulder.

"I don't know, man. If they've survived our here for at least four years, I think one of them could take you all on." Jorge chuckles.

"Four years?" Teresa exclaims. Juno's eyes widen; four years is a long time. You learn a lot in four years. She would know.

"Rumours of them have been around for four years."

"Whelp, hopefully up here we won't get attacked." Frypan shrugs.

"You guys are really going to jinx us." Leanne sighs.

Teresa scoffs. "You're the one who keeps bringing it up."

"Shut up, Teresa." Leanne rolls her eyes, fed up with the group's bickering although she made it worse.

"Can you both shut up?" Aris mumbles. "You're annoying everyone." June signals for Aris to stop over Leanne's shoulder, but the two sentences had already been heard by Leanne, and she was already turning to face him.

"You know what Aris, ever since we've gotten out you've been very quiet, and I think that's cause you're hiding something." The angry brunette glares.

Aris swallows quickly. He obviously did not want to be on Leanne's bad side, and Juno understood that. However, it seemed Leanne was already riled up.

 _Here we go_. Newt sighs in Juno's head.

Juno looks over at him. _She's very hot-headed._

Newt raises his eyebrows. _You haven't seen the worst of it._

_I don't think I want to._

"I— uh— well I told you everything I know." Aris stutters.

Leanne stops, and the rest of the group stop with her. The people watch carefully and Jorge watches with an amused smile on his face. "Okay, so why had you been at the holding centre for so long? Why didn't they take you too?" Aris stood quietly as she firmly placed her hands on her hips. "Why do you always seem to linger at the outside of the group, and never help?" She takes a step closer. "Why are you always watching, huh? Are you watching us for someone?" Juno feels a pant of sadness in her chest for Aris. She understood why he lingered at the outskirts of the group — because he was an outsider. She felt the same way. Of course, Leanne could never feel that way. She would never feel that way. She was the centre of attention and everything belonged to and rotated around her. And this made Juno mad, and maybe even a little jealous. Sometimes, Leanne drove her absolutely insane. She would call the shots without asking for anyone else's opinion, or order them around like they had to do stuff for her. Sometimes, Juno just wanted to slap her out of that mindstate and make her realize that not everyone would get down on their knees for her.

Aris huffs out in annoyance, no longer tolerating the girl, and a sense of pride overtakes Juno's body. She was happy Aris was standing up for himself. "You know what, Leanne? You're just angry that Thomas is missing with some other girl cause you freaked out when you had to jump. You're angry cause you're friend Gally is dead. And cause Winston is dead, and you couldn't save him. You're mad at yourself because in reality, you're the useless one." Before Aris can continue, Leanne launches herself at him. She uses her nails to scratch at his arms and pounds on his chest hard.

Juno watches as Frypan and Newt leap towards them and hoist the angry girl away before she can do any real damage — or throw Aris off the cliff. Minho holds Aris back from retaliating, and Jorge and Juno watch amusingly.

"Feisty little one." He chuckles.

June nods. "She had it coming." She watches as Newt pulls Leanne away from the group to talk to her. "She's pushing everyone's buttons."

"It's the heat." Minho justifies. "It's just making her moody."

Juno scoffs. "The heat is making all of us moody, and you don't see us attacking each other."

Frypan extends his arm in front of Juno. "I'm worried you might start attacking Minho."

Juno rolls her eyes, moving to stand beside Teresa. "I'm not violent." She spits out harshly.

Teresa watches the foreign girl with confused eyes. She opens her mouth to speak but June raises her hand. "Please. Just don't." Teresa nods in understanding, and the two girls stand in silence as Jorge steps towards Newt and Leanne.

"You done?" The two nod. "Let's get going."


	12. Phantoms of the Past

**JUNO COULDN'T REMEMBER** what the world before the Flare looked like. A part of her almost wished to see the world — not in the chaos it was before most departed, but the way it looked before the Armageddon. Did the sun still shine this bright? Was the world really a better place before nature took out the humans? Or was it the humans who took themselves out? What truly caused the virus? Where did it come from? Juno longed for her answers. She wished to know about her family, and if they still lived. She wished to find herself; the real her. She wanted to know her real name, she wanted to know where she was from, she wanted to know what that place looked like. She wondered what she spent her time doing before the sickness that had consumed the world arrived. Did she have any siblings? Or cousins, or aunts and uncles? Juno wanted to know where her place in this world once was.

The endless hours of walking had given Juno too much time to overthink all this. The sun beat down on their bodies harshly, forcing them to wear blankets or scarves to cover their heads. Although it offered some protection from the sun, and they should be grateful for it, Minho complained it's made him feel like he was going to suffocate.

Another long hour of walking meant almost nothing to Juno anymore. She barely registered anything as they walked; she almost couldn't even remember where they were headed. She was exhausted, and happy to oblige when Jorge told them to stop.

Glancing over Frypan's shoulder, she spots small piles of burnt earth and woof laying across the small path. Someone had been there.

Jorge kneels down and feels the ashes. "It's cold." He shakes his head. "It's been a little while."

"But they were still here." Leanne huffs, swearing under her breath. "We don't want to run into them."

"Well we can't backtrack, that'll loose us another hour and waste the one we just spend walking." Juno sighs, kicking a pile of dirt beneath her feet. She wouldn't turn back around, even if they did. She didn't want to walk for longer than necessary.

Jorge looks over his shoulder to the path ahead of them, then back to the group. "But what if we did catch up." Jorge says after a moment of silence. "We could maybe convince them to work with us."

"Work with us?" Minho exclaims. "Now you're sounding even more crazy than usual."

Teresa steps forward. "But think about it. If we do, we could probably convince them by saying we could take them to the Right Arm." Juno had to admit, that wasn't a horrible idea. They could use a little extra help.

"Sounds like a plan!" Jorge smiles, getting ready to move again.

"Woah, woah, woah! A half-cocked plan!" Leanne frowns. "What if they don't believe us. What do we do then?"

Jorge grins towards the girl. "We figure it out then." Leanne stands in her place, not convinced. "Hermana, I've got a plan. There's just a small gap in that plan, which is where we run into those women."

Juno glances around her, watching the others as they seemingly wait for Leanne to speak. To Juno, it appeared that with Thomas gone Leanne had taken the spot as the leader. Anyone else in the group probably could have done a good job, of course, because the teens were respectful and listened to each other. But, Leanne stuck out like a sore thumb. She always wanted her opinions heard and wasn't afraid to get involved in an argument, or even start one.

"Okay." She nods. "Let's go."

"Lady's first." Jorge smiles to her.

Leanne starts walking, but Jorge calls her name out. "Uh, Leanne, we're going that way." He points in the opposite direction and everyone smiles.

Leanne smiles with them. "This is why I don't walk in the front."

**•••**

Jorge spoke the entire forty minutes, telling them stories about the "Ghost Girls" that they were searching for. He spoke right up until they arrived at a makeshift campsite. A few tents made of wood and sheets were pressed against the wall of rocks, and a few round burnt patches on the ground suggested they had already camped here for a little while. The group shifted uneasily; no one was in sight.

Juno couldn't help but wonder why the women would camp so close to their last campsite, but she did have to admit that people were probably more scared of them than they were of others.

However as June inspected the place, she came to the conclusion that no one had been there in a while. The sheets on the wood were all ripped, allowing them to see the contents of the tents. Old bags were laying in the tents, almost like they waited for their owners to return. The camp was definitely abandoned.

"No one's been here in a long time." Minho points out, walking towards the tents to begin to search the bags.

Around her, others copy Minho. June finds herself following, and begins to rummage through a bag. There wasn't anything she needed.

"Hey guys!" Aris calls out. "Look at this! It's a journal."

The teens move to crowd around Aris as he flips it open to the front page.

"Do I— do I read it?" He asks hesitantly.

"Well what do you think we're waiting for!" Frypan exclaims.

Clearing his throat, Aris begins to read the journal. "Day one; the girls and I have escaped WICKED. I'm not quite sure how, but we have. It was a rough fight. After fighting the monsters, we were so tired. When we got out of the maze, there were these people waiting for us. It was suspicious, and I wasn't the only one who thought so. Instead of going with them, we ran. Even though we're safe —for now— I feel guilty. We've already started making a plan to get back into our maze. I promised Juno that I would come back for her and the others." At the familiar name, everyone turns to face Juno, who visibly pales.

Her breath hitches in her throat when she meets Aris' eyes. There was only one person that Juno could think of that had made the specific promise.

"Wha— what?" She stutters, frowning. "What's the name at the bottom of the page, Aris?" The boy hesitates for a moment, so Juno pushes the teens out of her way to stand in front of Aris, who clutches the book tightly. " _Aris_. What's the name?"

"Rosalyn." He winces when Juno yanks the journal from his hand.

"Junie," Leanne takes a step forward to place a hand on the girl's arm softly. "Who's Rosalyn?"

"She was, um—" June's voice cracks and Leanne moves to wrap an arm around the girl in a comforting manner. Clearing her throat, June speaks again. "She was a girl in my maze." June swallows, blinking quickly to keep her tears at bay. She keeps her eyes on the paper, where surely, at the bottom, the name _Rosalyn_ was inscribed in an all too familiar cursive. "We were in our maze a lot longer before you. We figured out how to escape, how to turn the monsters in our maze off for a little bit. It would give us just enough time to escape. But there were so many young girls, who couldn't fight, so we sent the older girls first to get an idea of what we would do." Juno exhales softly. "They never came back. We thought— well we thought they had died." She shakes her head. "Some girls hoped they would come back for us. But they never did, and so most of us lost hope." Flipping the journal shut, Juno shrugs out of Leanne's arm. She had lost hope. They waited days, _months_ , and no one ever returned. "Here I am, three years later, seeing that they really did escape. And they were trying to get back to us. For a little while, at least." Juno looks up and realizes everyone's staring at her. Clearing her throat loudly, she straightens her back. "We should get moving."

Leanne nods to the girl, then looks to the others. "Yeah, we should." When no one moves, Leanne claps her hands together twice. "Let's go! Come on!" The brunette begins to move, pushing people lightly so they begin to walk too.

Juno lets the others around her move first, then takes up the rear beside Newt. The boy takes the journal from her hands carefully and slips it into her bag, then slips his hand into hers. _You okay?_

_As okay as I can be._

It was the truth. Though the news of Rosalyn's survival —along with others from their maze— was a surprise, Juno had already grieved for her fallen sisters. She wasn't going to now. That was all in the past, and June had to focus on her future. If she wanted to get far, she couldn't let these emotions cloud her vision.

**•••**

Juno couldn't hide her surprise once they reached the city. For days, they had walked through a desert of unknown — empty of any living being. But now, they found themselves in the bustling city, and June couldn't seem to focus on one thing. There were so many people running around the streets, which did help them find what they needed. Jorge knew where he was going, and the flow of people seemed to further ensure his destination. The place was hard to miss; people seemed to only flow in and out of that building. The people who bustled in, obviously looking for a good time.

Juno walks alongside Newt towards the building. _How much do you wanna bet that Lea's going to get into a fight in there?_ She can hear the smirk in his voice.

 _I would bet my entire next meal. And that's saying something, cause I'm starving._ Juno glances up at him and smiles.

A flash of recognition appears in Jorge's eyes and he marches forward, swinging his fist and punching the man standing outside of the building.

"Hello, Marcus." Jorge spits, narrowing his eyes at the man.

The man rubs his jaw, straightening his body back up to glance over at the group before looking back at Jorge. "Jorge. What are you doing here?"

"Not to socialize, that's for sure." Leanne snaps, stepping forward to get a good view at the man who was already getting on her nerves.

"Calm down, darling. Go inside, have a drink, relax." Marcus smiles, and the woman beside him giggles.

Leanne face burns red. "After everything I've been through just to get here—"

Jorge steps in front of Lea, making her quiet down. "She's a feisty little one."

"You b—" Once again, Leanne is interrupted. Minho tugs the girl back harshly to speak to her quietly.

 _She's very predictable_. Juno says a-matter-of-factly.

Newt chuckles aloud. _Well, it kinda depends. She is getting more and more predicable._

The two glance back at Jorge, who seems to be threatening Marcus. Marcus raises his hands in surrender and moves aside for Jorge, who gestures for the teenagers to follow him.

Newt makes a gesture for Juno to go first. With Marcus and Jorge in front of her, she walks in past the curtains and takes in the scene. The building smells of sweat and alcohol; bodies press up against one another as people dance around the room.

"Let's split up to find them." Jorge yells over the loud music.

June moves to the right of the room; some couples make out against the back wall, other share cigarettes. The smoke gets caught in Juno's lungs and she coughs aggressively, trying to get air back into her lungs.

"Want a puff?" The woman with the cigarette gestures to Juno with the cigarette between her fingers.

"No, thanks." June yells over the music. "I'm looking for my —uh— my friend. He's tan, has short dark brown hair. Tall." Juno explains, hoping that the woman would be of some help.

The woman shrugs. "You just described half the men in this room."

"Fair point." June nods, leaving the woman. The further she walks into the room the more strongly it smells of liquor. The stench burns her nostrils and her eyes begin to water. Not paying attention to where she's walking, Juno trips over something and catches herself quickly on the wall. Glancing down, she sees that she's tripped over a foot. Following the foot up to a body, and then a face, she realizes that she's tripped over Thomas. "Oh, fuck." Crouching down, she places a few fingers on his neck to check for a pulse. Luckily, a steady beat drums against her fingers.

 _Newt, I've found him. Against the left wall near the cloud of smoke._ Juno's heart beats loudly in her ears as she checks for any injuries, or God forbid, blood. When nothing is visible, Juno lets her body relax next to Thomas. "Damn, one of these days you're going to give me a goddamn heart attack." She mumbles, shaking the boy's shoulders. "Damn it _,_ wakeupThomas!" When he doesn't respond, June stops. There was no point in trying if he obviously wasn't going to wake up.

A few moments later Newt rushes over with Minho, Aris and Frypan with him. Aris helps Juno stand up whilst the other boys each grab Thomas by his limbs. Juno and Aris push people to the side as they maneuver their way towards the bottom of a staircase, where Teresa waits for them. "They're already upstairs." The girl tells them. Aris makes his way past them and follows Teresa up.

Frypan calls Leanne over and the girl comes running. "You found him?" She asks.

"Junie did. He was laying by the side of the room, unconscious." Newt nods over to Minho and Frypan, who are now carrying the unconscious boy up the stairs.

Aris peaks his head out from a room and runs down a couple steps. "Guys, come on! They're waiting."

Following Aris up the stairs, the group is led into a large room. Old chandeliers hang from the ceiling, run down couches are placed around the room and a table with four chairs is placed near the back of the room. In the corner under a window, there's a mattress pressed up against the wall.

June's eyes wander over to Brenda as Minho and Frypan place Thomas down on the mattress. Brenda looks very unhappy, sitting on one of the couches further away. She kept glaring over at the corner where Thomas was placed, and June quickly understands when she looked over to see Teresa settling down next to Thomas.

June trudges behind Leanne as the girl moves further into the room. Marcus was tied up to a chair and his lip was already split; Jorge was wasting no time.

It seemed Minho thought the same thing when he raises an eyebrow towards the older man. "Jeez, Jorge. You're already working at him, huh?"

"He knows where the Right Arm is." Jorge grumbles. "He just won't talk."

June averts her eyes from the blood and goes to sit down at the table, so that Marcus' back is to her. Leanne sits beside June, grumbling something under her breath about a waste of time.

After five minutes, the teens were growing impatient. Jorge was trying to keep his calm, but Juno could tell that he wanted to destroy Marcus. The stubborn man barely spoke, and if he did it was to say something snarky.

 _You really think he's actually going to help us?_ Newt asks Juno curiously from across the room. He's sitting up against the wall with Frypan, Aris and Minho.

 _I don't know_. Juno scoffs internally. _I'm pretty damn close to punching him too, though._

 _Really?_ She can hear the amusement in his tone. _I couldn't see you yelling at anyone, let alone actually physically hurting someone_.

Juno drops her head to hide her smile, but she knows that Newt can see it from his spot on the floor. _Yeah, I can't see myself hurting anyone either. I see one drop of blood and I get close to fainting._

 _Do you know why?_ His voice is serious now.

June reminds herself not to shrug, which she almost did out of habit. She was still not used to this whole talking in their heads thing. _Not really. I've been like this for as long as I can remember._

Newt turns to Frypan, who seems to have asked him a questions, and their conversation ends. Although it's done, Newt's question rings through June's head; why was she so scared of blood? What had lead to this fear? Where had it originated? June couldn't help but wonder if this was something of WICKED's doing, or if she had arrived in their clutches like this.

Another ten minutes pass and Jorge's patience seems to snap. "I'm suggest that you talk!" He tells Marcus angrily. "You son of a bitch! Talk!" Jorge swings his fist forward quickly and punches Marcus across the cheek. "Damn it!"

"I'm sorry..." Marcus begins snarking. "You're going to have to leave my house."

"Looks like you've been having fun." Juno whips her head towards Newt and sees Thomas standing up beside him. The boy's eyes roam over to Jorge and Marcus.

"Listen. I don't enjoy hurting you." Jorge finally calms down.

"Okay?"

"Where is the Right Arm, Marcus?"

"Wait, this is Marcus?" Thomas asks, frowning. Juno contains herself from rolling her eyes; Thomas was really oblivious, and not only about the girls in his life. Brenda was still sulking in her corner and glaring over at them every couple minutes, Teresa was waiting dutifully at his side and Leanne has almost given herself whiplash when she heard his voice. All of this, and Thomas didn't even realize.

"The kid catches on quick." Marcus laughs. "Are you the brains of the operation?" Juno had to agree with Marcus there. Thomas wasn't the brightest of the group by a long shot.

Jorge interrupts Marcus, grabbing his hair to push his head back. "I know you know where they're hiding." He tells him, shutting the tied man up. "So you tell me, and I'll make you a deal."

"You can come with us." Thomas speaks up.

Marcus grins at the boy. "Thanks for the invitation, but I burned that bridge a long time ago." Marcus shrugs through the bindings. "Besides, I made my own deal." He looks up at Jorge. "You're the one who taught me, never miss an opportunity."

"What the hell is he talking about?" Newt stands, crossing his arms over her chest as he comes to stand next to Thomas.

"I'm talking about supply and demand." He replies shortly. "WICKED wants all the Immunes they can get. I help provide that for them."

"Dick." June mumbles quietly.

Marcus ignores her and keeps speaking. "So I lure the kids in...they get drunk, they have a good time." Marcus' eyes roam over the kids in the room. "And then, later, WICKED comes in...they separate the wheat from the chaff."

"I changed my mind, hermano." Jorge speaks calmly. "I do enjoy hurting you." The older man grabs onto Marcus shoulders and pushes his chair back to fall onto the ground. He pulls his gun out and stands over Marcus. "Talk! Talk!"

At the sight of the gun, Marcus caves quickly. . "Okay! Jesus!" He exclaims quickly. With Newt's help, Jorge pulls the chair back up. "But I'm not making any promises. These guys like to move around." Marcus huffs out. "They have an outpost in the mountains. But it's a long way away." Marcus smiles. "You got half of WICKED on your ass. You're never gonna make it." He concludes. "Not on foot."

Jorge's quiet for a minute before he speaks. "Where's Bertha?" He asks quickly.

Marcus' grin turns into a frown. "Not Bertha." He pleads. "Please, no." Jorge raises his fist to punch Marcus, but the pleading man yells for him to stop. "I'll tell you, but first you have to answer my question." Marcus asks and Jorge nods. "Where'd you pick all these kids up?"

Jorge chuckles. "They came to me." His eyes flicker over the teens and they stop on Juno. When she meets his eyes, a flash of pity is seen in Jorge's eyes. June averts gets quickly. She didn't want their pity. She didn't want anything from them; she was strong enough to hold herself together.


	13. The Right Arm

**JUNO FOUND HERSELF** squished in the back of "Bertha", an old rusty truck, with Brenda, Aris and Leanne. The bench in front was occupied by Minho, Thomas, Frypan and Teresa, and Newt found himself in the front seat beside Jorge.

Every couple minutes, June would shift uncomfortably. Her body was pressed up against others and her cheeks were red with warmth. The heat in the vehicle was unbearable, which had resulted in them opening the windows.

Although the vehicle was filled over it's maximum capacity, it was helpful to have it. Juno wouldn't dare complain about the heat or being squished — she would take driving over walking (or God forbid; running) any day. It was especially helpful for they drove a much longer distance than they could walk in a day. As an added bonus, the vehicle also protected them from the sun.

No one spoke as Jorge sped forward along the winding mountain road. Instead, they kept their eyes on the surrounding landscape, watching for falling rocks or anything — _anyone_ — that might be a threat.

Jorge was definitely driving much faster than he should along the road but none of them could bring themselves to care. It would definitely help find their destination, not that any of them even knew where they were headed. Not for sure, at least. They had been driving for at least a few hours, watching for any signs of the Right Arm, but to no avail.

As Jorge's speed slowed, June found herself craning her neck to get a look at the road ahead of them. In front of a tunnel and even into the tunnel, multiple cars sat, unmoving.

Grateful for an excuse to leave the truck, Juno steps out and stretches her legs, then her back. Her muscles were tense from the running, and being cramped up in that car was no help. Her back ached but she wouldn't complain, for she knew everyone else was also in pain.

Jorge sighs. "Well, I guess we're on foot."

Juno scrunches her nose up, holding back a groan. But she had to look on the bright side; she would get to stretch her legs.

Taking their bags from the vehicle, they begin to walk towards the parked vehicles. Juno peers through the windows of a car as Frypan moves to go through the trunk. Around her, people move to do the same.

"It's empty." She mutters, moving past the car to look down into another. "Maybe they had to stop, like us?" She frowns.

Before Frypan can respond to her, Juno shoves the boy to the ground behind car, narrowly missing a bullet. The sound of gunshots rings through the air, echoing against the mountains.

"Get down!" Jorge yells.

"This is certainly an eventful adventure." Juno mumbles as Frypan squeezes her hand worriedly. 

"Hey, is everyone okay out there?" Thomas calls out.

"We're fine." Teresa yells from a little ways away.

Eyeing Frypan for injuries, Juno responds. "We're good too." Then, only loud enough for her to hear, she mumbles. "I think." Frypan seems to be gasping for air, and his eyes haven't left the bullet hole in the car in from of them; the bullet hole made by the weapon that nearly killed him mere seconds ago. "Listen, Fry, everything will be fine, okay?"

Frypan nods unconvincingly. "Yeah, yeah."

"Anyone know where those bloody shots came from?" Newt yells.

"That son of a bitch, Marcus. He led us into an ambush." They hear Jorge say. A few seconds later, more gunshots are fired, and Frypan flinches as the hit the ground close to the car Newt and Aris are crouched behind.

 _Are you sure you're good?_ Newt asks worriedly in her head.

 _I'd be more worried about Frypan if I were you._ June doesn't look away from the boy. Taking his shaky hand in her steady one, she smiles reassuringly. "This is nothing different than taking WICKED on, Fry."

"I know," He squeaks. "But that bullet was really close."

June squeezes his hand. "But it _missed_. That's what matters."

"Everybody!" Jorge yells to them. "Get set to sprint back to the truck! And hold your ears!"

June and Frypan raise into a crouch, preparing to run back to the truck, but before anything can happen a gun is reloaded not far to their left; where Thomas and Jorge are crouched.

"Drop it." A female says. "Now! I said drop it." They hear a clanging sound on the ground. "On your feet. Let's go." She says harshly. June and Frypan are forced up when someone else comes up from behind them and brings the gun up to press against Juno's head.

"Move." They growl lowly.

"Let's go!" The woman says even more harshly. "Move! Back up!" Juno is pushed towards Jorge and Thomas, who've been forced to stand and back up to join her and Frypan. Soon enough, Minho and Newt are forced best to them.

Two females push their group together. Slowly, everyone else moves to get up. "Come on, let's go!"

"Don't be stupid!" The other woman yells.

Teresa and Leanne join them last. "Move. Slowly."

The woman with the brown hair in dreads frowns as her eyes roam over the group.

"Aris?"

The group turns to look at Aris slowly, and the tan woman pulls the scarf around her face off.

"Oh, my God. Harriet?" Aris pushes past the other teens, moving to hug the female.

"My God. What the hell are you doing here?" She asks him as she returns the hug.

Aris turns to look over at the blonde, who's also taken off her scarf. "Sonya." He moves to hug her.

"Aris, you're lucky we didn't shoot your dumb ass." She laughs as she hugs him.

"How...?" Aris asks them.

"What's happening?" Minho asks beside the others, who all still stand with their hands raised.

"We were in the maze together." Aris smiles.

Harriet, the brunette, walks a few feet away to whistle loudly. "We're clear, guys!" She yells. "Come on out!"

"Copy that! We're clear!" People yell down from the mountains. "Stand down!"

June's eyes roam away from Aris and his friends and up at the people who score into view on the top of the mountains.

"Holy crap." Leanne sighs, and Juno looks over at the girl to see that she is also eyeing the others coming into view.

"You could say that again." Minho shakes his head in amazement.

"A lot of people." Lea mumbles.

A tug on Juno's sleeve catches her attention and she turns to see a smiling Newt. Returning the smile, he tugs her arm to follow him as Sonya and Harriet lead them through the tunnel.

Around them, people climb into the vehicles to move them out of the way. _Where did they get all these ressources from?_

Newt around them before glancing back down at the short girl. _Who knows._

"We're taking them to base." Harriet says to the people.

"Wait, so, how did you guys get here?" Aris asks as they follow her up to a few Jeeps.

"The Right Arm got us out." Harriet tells them shortly.

"Wait, wait. The Right Arm?" Thomas asks, speeding up to walk at the front of the group. They come to a stop in front of the Jeeps. "Do you know where they are?"

Harriet smiles, opening the car's door. "Hop in."

**•••**

Seated between Newt and Teresa, Juno wasn't sure whether she felt grateful about not having to walk the long distance or wether she was unhappy because she didn't get to stretch her legs as much as she would have hoped.

To her right, Teresa bounces her leg up and down nervously. The little tick doesn't bother Juno at first but as the ride continues Juno begins to grown impatient. Bringing her hand down on Teresa's knee to forcefully stop the bouncing, June frowns. "What's got you so worried?" She removes her hand when Teresa makes no move to bounce her leg again.

Teresa turns away from the window to face a waiting June and a curious Newt. Releasing her bottom lip from her teeth, the girl sighs, looking down at her legs. "I'm just worried about Leanne." Teresa mumbles quietly.

"What?" Newt frowns, unable to hear her.

Lifting her chin to look them in the eyes, Teresa repeats herself. "I'm worried about Leanne."

Juno watches Newt's jaw clench as a glare begins to form on his face. "And what in the bloody hell has she done this time?"

The brunette turns her attention back to Teresa, who grows nervous under their eyes. "Well, she's gotten herself shot."

Juno's mouth parts in surprise and her eyes widen. "Where?"

"In the arm."

Newt hits his head against the headrest behind him. "Of course she has." He mumbles, rolling his eyes.

Although he seemed angry on the outside, in the short amount of time Juno had known Newt she knew that he wasn't angry right now. He was worried.

 _Hey._ Her voice comes out small in his head, and stops all the thoughts running through his mind. _She's okay._ June sends him a small smile, and he manages to return one. _She's got Minho_ _and_ _Thomas in there with her, so I'm sure they've already given her hell for not saying anything._ Newt nods unconvincingly. _She doesn't need you to worry about her too. Leanne is a strong woman, she can handle herself._

 _I know she can handle herself._ Newt turns to look out at the passing scenery. _I just want her to know that she can talk to me, whenever she needs to. I don't want her to think that she's alone._

June smiles softly. _She's lucky to have you._ Newt turns to look down at her. _All of you guys. Protecting and looking out for her._

 _Hey._ He reaches out to grab her hand. _The same applies to you, Junie. We're all here for you too._

June smiles, pulling her tiny hand from his large one. _Thank you, Newt._ She turns to look across Teresa and out at the endless desert and mountains. It was a nice gesture, telling her she could talk to them, but she couldn't. Not about everything. She barely knew any of them. Even with Leanne, she felt iced off. The last time she had truly felt free —truly felt like herself— she had been with the Hally, Luna, Reese and Kiko, back at WICKED's facility. It may have been a prison, but there she had felt like herself. Surrounded by her sisters, she had felt safe. She didn't feel very safe anymore.

**•••**

Finally pulling up to the camp, a sense of fear ran through Juno. This could easily turn into a horrible situation. However, she couldn't think that way right now. So, forcing the negative thoughts from her brain, June climbs out of the vehicle. She walks a few steps then stops to take in the view; around them, people bustled to get to their destination. Some spoke with others, whilst some seemed to be at work.

"They've been planning this for over a year now." Harriet explains as they walk up to the base. "This is all for us."

"You guys are lucky you found us when you did." Sonya says. "We're moving out at first light." The blonde looks over at a man walking by. "Where's Vince?"

"Somewhere over there, I think." He gestures towards some tents up to the right.

"Who's Vince?" Thomas asks.

"He's the one who decides if you get to stay." Harriet answers as her eyes rake over the new group.

Her eyes stop on someone and Juno follows Harriet's eyes to Leanne, who clutches her now bloodied jacket around her arm.

Turning away from Leanne to focus on where she's walking, June can't help but wonder where the rest of the people are. There was a good amount of people, but not as many as they had heard. However, Juno was quickly learning that the truth was always twisted.

"I thought the Right Arm was supposed to be an army." Thomas points out.

"Yeah, we were." A tall man with dirty blonde hair steps out from a tent to their right. "This is all that's left of us." He walks to stand in front of them. "Lot of good people died getting us this far." He turns to look at Harriet and Sonya. "Who are they?"

"They're Immunes." Harriet replies. "Caught 'em coming up the mountain."

The man, Vince, takes a good look at the group, noticing Brenda's ghostly complexion and the blood on Leanne's arm and hand. "Did you check 'em?"

"I know this guy, Aris. I trust him." Harriet shrugs.

"Well, I don't." He shakes his head. "Check 'em." He gestures for a man behind them to come and check them.

June watches as a man steps forward to check the newcomers. His eyes wander over the group. The amount of people watching them was enough to make Juno nervous, but that bubble in her stomach bursts when Brenda falls forward to the ground.

Forgetting her nervousness, she watched helplessly as Jorge jumps into action, coming to a crouch beside Brenda. "Brenda! Brenda." He helps her lay back in his arms. "Brenda, talk to me."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." They can hear the girl repeat to Jorge.

"What's going on with her?" Vince asks, crouching down at Brenda's feet.

"I don't know." Jorge shakes his head. "Brenda, are you all right?"

Peeking over Minho's shoulder, June's able to see Brenda. Vince moves towards her and cautiously lifts her pant leg, revealing a swelling bite mark.

"Shit!" He yells, backing up and pulling his gun out quickly to point it at Brenda. "Crank! We got a Crank!"

A chorus of "no"s are yelled from the teens as they back away slightly from the gun, although they don't want to see Brenda hurt.

Thomas is the only one who runs towards Vince. "Wait, wait!" He raises his hands in front of him. 

"Step back!" Vince yells to Thomas.

"Listen, okay? This just happened, okay?" Thomas speaks quickly. "She's not dangerous yet."

Vince shakes his head. "You shouldn't have brought her here!"

"I know." Thomas answers quietly.

"We let Cranks in here now, the safe haven doesn't last a week!"

At this point, people have crowded around them from a safe distance to watch the scene.

"I understand, okay?" Thomas nods. "I understand. Just listen. Please. Please, okay?" He pleads with Vince. "I told her that you could help. Okay?"

"There's got to be something you can do." Teresa says from beside Brenda.

Vince looks over at the redhead. "Yeah, there is." He doesn't put his gun down. "I can put her out of her misery."

"No! No!" Jorge yells, being held back by two men.

"Vince, that's enough!" A female yells from behind, coming up to stand with him. "Let him go." She says to the men holding Jorge.

"She's infected, Doc." Vince says the the woman. "There's nothing we can do for her."

The Doctor's eyes move over to Thomas. "No, but he can." She pauses. "Hello, Thomas." Her eyes then flicker over to Leanne. "And Leanne." She says, sounding surprised.

Juno's breath hitches in her throat as she watches the women step forward. She turns to look at Leanne, as they rest of them have.

"Don't look at me, I don't know her." She shrugs, leaning on Minho for support. "I think I'm about to faint too."

"You know me?" Thomas asks her.

"Interesting." She nods. "It makes sense they'd put you in the maze." She walks over to Brenda. "Though I must admit... I was worried they'd kill you after what you did."

"What I did?" He asks.

"The first time we spoke, you said you couldn't take it anymore... watching your friends die, one by one." She looks over the group. "The last time we spoke... you gave me the coordinates of every WICKED compound, trial and lab."

"He was our source." Vince concludes.

"We couldn't have pulled all this off without him." She nods. "Take her to the tent. Get these guys some warm clothes." She instructs to people. Jorge helps the doctor pick Brenda up. "Careful. Come on."

"Thanks." Jorge mumbles.

"Hey, it's the least we can do." She smiles, then waves for Thomas to follow. "Thomas, come on. I need to get some blood from you."

Juno watches in relief as Brenda is lifted away and Thomas follows. They were lucky this time, but June wasn't sure how much longer they could last purely on luck.


	14. Rain of Blood

**THE WIND WAS** cold on Juno's cheeks as she moved towards the group of boys sitting at the top of the rocks. After helping Leanne to a tent to get some medical attention, she had sought them out.

Huffing out, Juno sits beside Frypan and slumps against him. "You think we'll actually get some sense of calm now?" She asks curiously.

"If everything goes to plan, yes." Minho responds from Frypan's other side.

Newt chuckles. "When do things actually go to plan?"

June turns to look up at him. "Before I met you guys, all of my plans worked." She shrugs, sitting up straight to lean back and crack her back. "I think it has to do with you guys and your bad luck."

"I don't doubt it." Frypan nods, scoffing. "We do have the worst luck."

"Well, maybe now I'll bring you some good luck." June smiles sweetly.

Thomas walks up up to join them. "I hope so." He adds, having heard Juno. A silence settles across them as they watch the sun set.

There was that word — _hope_ —. It was the thing Juno had, merely days ago, not let herself have. But now, sitting with these boys, that she would now call her friends, Juno had hope. She hoped they would find a safe-haven that would truly keep them from WICKED's clutches. She hoped that instead of running for their lives, they could _live_ , because what good was all the running if they didn't.

"I wish Alby could've seen all this." Newt begins.

"And Winston." Minho adds.

"And Chuck." Thomas looks down at an object in his hand.

Feeling as if she's intruding, Juno stands and slips away from the group quietly as the boys continue to speak amongst themselves.

Making her way down the rocks, Juno waves to Aris, who returns the wave as he speaks with Harriet and Sonya. She watches Aris say something to the girls that makes the two throw their heads back, laughing.

A pang of sadness surfaces in Juno's chest. Aris has been reunited with his friends. After everything was said and done, he still had his family.

Shaking her head, Juno walks around a couple tents to sit on a rock alone. She needed to think.

Mixed in with all her sadness was anger. Juno was angry with herself. She had left her sisters behind to leave. To save herself. They probably payed the price for her bad deeds. Juno had failed them. After Rosalyn had escaped their maze with a group of older girls, June had promised the rest of the girls that they would be safe. That she would protect them. It was a big promise, but she never thought she would actually have to hold through with her promise so seriously. She never thought she would have to protect her sisters from evil forces like WICKED. Regret — _guilt—_ was her constant companion. As the gears shift in Juno's head, she comes to one certain conclusion. She feared blood because the crimson liquid was a symbol of guilt.

Juno longed for the easier days. The days in her Maze. She longed for the caressing touch of a mother she didn't remember, and the booming laugh of a father. She wished for the memories that had been taken from her. She longed for her family; from before the Maze and her family from the Maze.

Though her heart ached for the sisters left behind —her _family_ left behind— Juno would not let her heart get in the way of her safety, of her _life_. If they couldn't live because of the mistakes Juno had made, than Juno would push to live for them. She would do whatever it takes.

The sound of an engine pulls June from her thoughts viciously as she jumps up from the rock. Jogging out from behind the tent, Juno watches people run around her in panic. "What's going on?" She yells over the shouting.

"It's WICKED!" One of the men around them howls. "They've found us!"

Around them, people run frantically in every direction. Juno frowns. She didn't know where she should be going. She had to find the others, but they were no longer sitting where she'd left them.

Juno is sent crashing to the ground when the first bomb drops. The sound is deafening, and makes Juno bring her hands up to shield her ears. Her head narrowly misses a rock as she hits the ground with a loud _thump_. She groans in pain, arching her back off the ground. She wouldn't be surprised if there were bruises there later. A loud ringing blocks out any other noises as she forces her eyes shut.

 _Newt? Where are you?_ She doubted that her voice was even transmitted to Newt; she could barely hear herself over the ringing in her head. A hand sticks out in front of her face to help her up. The person yanks her up and Juno goes to complain but her mouth is screwed shut when she comes face to face with a man dressed in WICKED's black uniform. A gun presses into her back as another one of WICKED's men comes up behind her.

"Move."

Juno winces as she's pushed around a tent. As she rounds the corner, her eyes widen at the sight; everyone was already being rounded up. WICKED had already won. They barely stood a chance. WICKED came prepared and they found themselves outnumbered.

Juno is shoved down a few feet away from Minho. Rocks dig into her knees through her pants as she shift uncomfortably under Mr. Janson's eyes. Unsatisfied, he walks away and stands with his back to them, speaking with one of his men.

"That was too easy for them." Juno mumbles to Minho.

Minho leans in closer to her. "We're not going down this easily."

Leanne walks into their view and she's shoved down aggressively between Minho and June.

A man passes behind them and scans their necks. Juno holds her breath nervously as the man steps up behind her. "X-7" The man reads.

A few meters in front of her, Mr Janson whips around at the sound of Juno's code. "X-7?" He asks the man. "Are you sure? Scan her again."

"Well, well, well." Janson approaches Juno. "Miss Juno, I knew you were valuable but not _that_ valuable." He gestures for another man to come over. "Take her off to the side. She's a special one."

Juno's pulled up harshly to stand off to the side.   
Three men move around her and she has to retain a snort. They were so worried she would slip through their clutches that they had to surround her by _three_ men.

Juno watches Janson pace back and forth nervously. "Where's Thomas?" He asks one of his men.

"Right here." A voice calls out from behind the kneeling prisoners.

Juno shifts uncomfortably on her feet as she watches Thomas surrender to WICKED. _What the hell is he doing?_ Juno scoffs.

Newt looks away from Thomas and towards Juno, who stands a little ways away. _It's Thomas. He's being an idiot._

"Thomas." Janson places his left hand on Thomas' shoulder, than rams his right fist into the boy's stomach. Juno winces for the boy.

Thomas bends over in pain. "Get him in line." A man grabs onto him and pushes him down on his knees beside Newt, who's on Minho's other side.

"Okay." Janson walks over to a different man and whispers something to him, but Juno ignores him and watches her friends lean over to talk to Thomas.

Juno wasn't going to give in to WICKED that easily. This entire time, all she'd done was run. She was sick and tired of running, and so it was time to fight. It had been made so clear to Juno that now, a war had begun.

Juno's thoughts are cut short when a sound echoes down from the sky. Looking up, she is blinded by the bright lights that shine down on them as the aircraft emerges from the smoke to land in front of them. The bottom lowers to become a ramp, and a blonde woman dressed in all white walks into the open.

"Is this all of them?" The woman asks Janson.

"Most of them." He nods. "It'll be enough."

Ava's eyes wander over the faces of the captured. "Start loading them in."

"Yes, ma'am." Janson nods again, turning to the armed men. "Okay, you heard. Let's go! Get 'em on!"

Juno watches nervously as Ava walks out to stand in front of her friends. Thomas is forced up onto his feet.

"Hello, Thomas." She speaks calmly. Then, to their left, armed men break apart to reveal Teresa. Then, the older blonde extends her arm to place her hand on Teresa's back. "I'm glad you're safe."

Juno lets out an audible gasp as she spots Teresa stand next to the woman she could only imagine was Ava Paige. The rest of her friends stand up quickly when they see Teresa.

"What the hell? Teresa?" Frypan frowns.

"Wait, what's going on?" Newt asks, glancing over at Leanne, then Thomas.

"She's with them." Thomas says shortly.

Minho shakes his head. "Since when?"

Janson walks over to stand beside Teresa. "Teresa's always had an evolved appreciation of the greater good." He walks around them to stand beside Ava. "Once we restored her memories, it was only a matter of time."

June can barely hear her friends over the noise around them, but she strains her neck to extend her ear. She was managing to hear a little of what they were saying.

"I'm sorry. I had no choice."

"Of course you had a choice." Leanne takes a few steps forward, but the man beside her stops her. "Teresa, I know why you're doing this." Leanne shakes her head. "She wouldn't want this."

Juno frowns at Leanne's words. She knew that she wasn't always told everything inside the group, but she had at least hoped she knew the important information. But from the looks on the other teenager's faces, Juno could tell that they were also confused by Leanne's words.

"She suffered so much, Lee." Teresa looks over at Ava. "I don't want that for anyone else."

Leanne pushes the man off her. "There's other ways to help!"

Teresa shakes her head, looking away from Leanne. "This is the only way. We have to find a cure."

Ava nods. "She's right. This is all just a means to an end." She watches Thomas carefully. "You used to understand that, Thomas." She looks over at the brunette. "You too, Leanne, just not as much as the others did."

Leanne glares at the older woman. "That's why you sent me in the Maze. You weren't planning on, but you did."

Juno wants to run over to her friends and stand with them, but the men standing near her would obviously stop her before she took even a step towards them.

Ava looks at the girl apologetically. "No matter what you think of me... I am not a monster." She shakes her head. "I'm a doctor. I swore an oath to find a cure!" She speaks confidently. "No matter the cost." She pauses. "I just need more time."

"More blood." Mary says from behind them.

June's eyes flicker over to Mary, who takes a step forward.

"Hello, Mary." Ava speaks calmly, he voice unwavering. "I hoped we'd meet again. I'm sorry it had to be under these circumstances." She says, almost coming off sincere.

"I'm sorry about a lot of things, too." Mary nods. "But not this." She shakes her head. "At least my conscience is clear."

For a few seconds, Ava doesn't respond. "So is mine."

June watches as Janson walks up to stand behind Ava. Quickly, he raises a gun in his hand. Without hesitation, he pulls the trigger. The bullet makes quick work and Mary stumbles to the ground.

Vince lunges forward to catch Mary, resting her against him. He begs Mary for a response, but the woman's eyes have already closed. "No! Mary!" Vince's painful screams ring through the thick air and Juno winces as they reach her ears. She didn't know Mary well, but she knew that the doctor didn't deserve to die.

"Come on, Janson." Ava turns away to start walking towards the helicarrier. "Load them up. Let's go." She yells to the armed men around them. "All these people. Get rid of them."

A man grabs onto Juno's arm and he's about to tug her onto the aircraft when someone starts yelling.

"Get back! Everyone, stand back!" Juno whips towards her friends and she plants her heels firmly in the ground to stop moving.

Thomas stands in front of everyone with a bomb and detonator raised in his hands for everyone to see. Around him, WICKED workers raise their guns. Janson runs towards them, holding his hands up to for them to stop.

"Hold your fire!" He yells to them. "Hold your fire!"

"Stand back. Let 'em go." Thomas keeps the bomb raised in his hand.

"Thomas, put it down." Janson tries to plead.

Thomas doesn't listen to him. "Let 'em all go!"

Ava Paige takes a couple steps towards Thomas. "You know I can't do that!"

"Thomas, please stop." Teresa takes her turn trying to plead to Thomas from behind Ava and Janson. She continues to speak quickly. "I made a deal with them. They promised we'd be safe. All of us."

"And I'm supposed to trust you now?" Thomas snaps at her.

"It's true. It was her only condition." Ava adds.

"Shut up!"

"Everything can go back to the way it was." Ava watches Thomas carefully. "Thomas... do you really want all of them to die?"

"Listen to her, Thomas." Janson adds. "Think about what you're doing."

Juno watches as Minho steps forward and stand beside Thomas. A symbol of unity. Around him, the rest of their friends do the same.

"We're with you, Thomas." Newt says, the rest of them nodding in agreement.

"Do it, Thomas." Minho tells him.

Juno meets Leanne's eyes and she nods her head.

"We're ready." Leanne says softly.

"We're not going back there." He shakes his head.

"Thomas?" Ava said quietly.

"It's the only way." Thomas says, not faltering.

"Thomas!" Ava yells as Thomas brings his finger down. But before he can press it, a loud car horn rings threw the air.

With Jorge in the front seat, he rams into one of the parked helicopters. The diversion makes the ground shake. Juno stabilizes herself quickly as the men around her stumble over their feet. Using their surprise to her advantage, June runs away from the scene.

Before she can get very far, a bomb explodes behind her. As her head hits the ground once again, Juno can tell that she has a concussion. The world around her seems to be silenced, and when she tries to open her eyes she sees nothing but blurry figures. A woman from the Right Arm who's fallen down beside her helps Juno up and mumbles something to her. Juno can't hear the woman, she she certainly can't read lips.

"What?" She frowns as her eyes blurs again. The ringing had begun to die down and she was finally able to hear the yelling around her —not that it was any better—.

"You need to find your friends." The woman informs her.

"Okay, yeah." Juno nods to the woman as she jogs off to help someone else.

"Stop right there!" Juno spins on her heels to see a four armed men coming in their direction, guns raised.

Groaning, Juno acts as quickly as her aching head will allow her and picks up a large wooden branch off the ground. One of the men shoots, and Juno lets out a shriek as it narrowly missed her shoulder. 

"Really?" Juno mumbles, lunging forward to swing the branch right into one of the men, sending him crashing backwards.

June turns, swinging the branch at one of the men's feet. Just as she does so, Leanne arrives beside her to help.

Leanne arrives just in time as more men arrive to fight with them. However the two girls aren't enough to fight the arriving men.

"There's too many of them!" Leanne yells. "We have to go back and find the guys!"

"Okay, let's go!" Juno nods, signalling Leanne to follow her.

Juno leads the way for the two, crouching to take cover behind a large shipping container where some of the other Right Arm members are hiding. "Lea, where are the—" The words get caught in her throat when Juno turns around. Leanne wasn't there. Juno's eyes move quickly as she searches for Leanne and they quickly find their mark. Leanne is held firmly between two of WICKED's men, arms flailing as she tries to escape their clutches.

Juno's feet move before she even gives herself time to think, but the woman from earlier stops her quickly. "You can't go!" The lady yells. "You would just get caught too."

"But Leanne..." Juno's words get caught in her throat when she meets the woman's eyes. The woman was obviously desperate, trying to save as many lives as she could.

Juno turns her eyes away from the woman and watches Leanne as she's pulled into the aircraft. Leanne's screams are loud as she begs for help. But even as the screams began to quiet down, Juno could still hear them echoing in her head. Little did she know, these screams would haunt her dreams in the coming months. Everything about that night would haunt her dreams; there was no doubt about it.


	15. THE DEATH CURE

_the first month._

**JUNO WOULD NEVER** sob aloud. She would never cry in front of anyone. She would never cry. She hadn't cried. Not since Leanne, Minho, and so many others were taken a month ago.

The month crept by them slowly. The time scared Juno. The first week, she hadn't thought about the time it would take to get her friends back. She thought they would jump into action quickly, but they didn't. Instead, they had travelled to the next destination, where the Right Arm had planned to move to before their arrival.

Juno couldn't tell who had taken the situation the worst. Everyone seemed to be at their breaking point, but others were better at hiding it than some. Thomas would sulk angrily, he was one of the obvious ones. Brenda, on the other hand, didn't show any emotions. The majority of the time, she would stand to the side quietly. In a brief discussion with Juno, the girl had revealed she was upset, but she wasn't going to be as open as Thomas was. If Juno had to pick one person who had taken it the worst, she would probably pick Newt. The boy seemed so normal, so _perfect_. He was enthusiastic about finding a solution to save his friends, and spent entire nights reading over the pages of information the Right Arm had on WICKED. Frypan had been very emotional the first couple weeks, but he was getting better at controlling his emotions.

Even now, as they all sat in silence around the bonfire, there was tension. Juno certainly wasn't the only one with guilt.

At night, she could hear them. She could hear Newt and his constant pacing, and Frypan's mumbling as Brenda tried to comfort him. Then, she would hear Brenda walk off as she began to worry and she would hear Jorge walk over to comfort her. After everyone else had settled, the evening ritual would continue as Newt paced back and forth, and only once everyone else had left Thomas would try and talk to Newt. That's how every night was spent.

However, there was one more step to the evening ritual. Every night, when Juno was under her blankets trying to sleep, she could hear him. She would hear him call out for her. And as her eyes grew heavy once again, his voice began to echo in her head.

 _Teresa? Teresa can you hear me?_ Thomas' voice startles Juno from her dozing.

She had been so close to sleeping! The boy just had to ruin it. Usually, Juno would wait until he was done trying to call out to Teresa to attempt to sleep. However tonight, she actually found herself tired.

And so, tired of this boy's unsuccessful attempts at speaking with Teresa, Juno gave in to the urge she always pushed down. _Will you shut up?_ Juno snaps in her head. _I'm the only person who can hear you._

 _June?_ She can almost hear his frown. _You're telepathic?_

She wondered in he knew Newt was too, or maybe Newt thought he couldn't speak to anyone but her. _Yeah, I guess so. Lucky me._ Her sarcastic voice is soft in Thomas' head.

 _Are you okay?_ Thomas asks quietly. June wonders if she can hear a hint of concern in his voice, but ignores it and turns over in her bed to face the wall.

 _Yeah, why wouldn't I be?_ June has to remind herself that he can't see her. Right now, even with her facade down —only in the cover of darkness— she could still lie. He couldn't see her, so she could still lie.

Thomas is quiet for a moment before he speaks. _Well, it just sounds like..._ Another moment of silence passes. _I mean, your voice sounds like you've been crying._

 _I haven't been crying, Thomas. Trust me, I don't cry. I was almost asleep, that's all._ Juno tries to keep her voice soft, but she can't help but be annoyed. Thomas couldn't keep himself out of everyone else's business, but Juno knew his intentions were pure.

 _I'm sorry. I just assumed— I mean— you do kinda sound like_ — He cuts himself off and suddenly everything is quiet in June's head.

 _I'm just tired. That's all it is_. Juno closes her eyes and pulls the blanket over her head. _I guess maybe I'm a little emotional._ Why was she telling Thomas, of all people, this? Maybe it was the sleep getting to her head, but June was tired of keeping it all to herself. She wanted to speak to someone about how she felt. _I just feel like it's my fault. If I'd only turned around, I would have seen that Leanne wasn't behind me._ She stops and lets the silence sink in. The quiet drags on. _Thomas? Are you still there?_

 _Oh, yeah. Sorry. I was just thinking_. His voice shrinks in her head, like he's pulling back. But then, his voice comes back. _I don't think it was any of our faults. I mean, we place the blame on ourselves, of course, but the real person to blame here is WICKED._

Juno lets his words sink in. _I guess you're right._ Yawning quickly, Juno lets her body relax. _Goodnight, Thomas._

_Goodnight, Junie._

**•••**

The mornings were maybe the worse for Juno. It was the fact that she really didn't have to pull herself out of bed that had her laying there until midday. On some days, the hours would tick by slowly. These were the days where Juno would find herself overthinking. On other days, the hours ticked by quickly. On these days, she was dozing, in a half dream-state where she was back in her Maze. On some of the bad days, one of her friends would have to come and get Juno out of bed. These were the days where she would only leave to get food. On the worst days, Juno would lay in for the entire day, or even for days. Her friends would take turns bringing her food, which would mostly remain untouched. Some of them would try and talk to her, while others would simply sit beside her and keep her company.

But one thing Juno had noticed on her worse days (where her mind was running at top speed) was that Newt never came to her. He never came to see how she was doing, or to bring her food. He never came to talk, and he certainly never came for comfort. The two, although having been in the same room sometimes, hadn't spoke to each other since that night.

Furthermore, if someone forced her to be honest, Juno might say that she was happy Newt had not been speaking to her, and there were two reasons to that. The first reason being her feelings. With some separation from Newt —and plenty of time to think— Juno found herself finally being able to sort out her feelings. Whether for Newt, or her newfound friends, or even herself. She could think without someone else's influence on her, because even if they didn't mean to influence her they still did. And the second reason she was happy for this time apart was her guilt. Even being near Newt and seeing how he was taking things brought a tidal wave of guilt into Juno. She couldn't help but feel like she was the one who gave Leanne to WICKED, and seeing Newt's pain just made it even harder to handle.

Today, when the sun rose to shine on Juno through the blinds, Juno found herself turning away from it and tugging the sheets up and over her head. She didn't want to face the sun today, because the bright and sunny days made her want to be happy, but she shouldn't feel happy when Minho, Leanne, Aris, and so many more had been taken from them.

Today, the woman who had helped her that night, who June had learnt was named Valeria, was the first person to come and check on her.

"June, sweetheart," Valeria calls out softly, moving across the tiny room to sit on Juno's bedside. Brenda had long since left their shared room, leaving Juno alone in her slumber. But now that she was awake, Juno knew she was going to be pestered. She also knew that her friends didn't mean to pester her; they only wanted the best for her. But sometimes their good intentions got in the way of what Juno wanted, which was silence. "You need to wake up." Valeria runs her hand over Juno's head, which is still under the sheet. "You should at least get up to shower today. How long has it been? Three days?" The older woman grabs the sheet between her hands and pulls it back softly. "Pee-ewes ! You stink!" Valeria exclaims dramatically, smiling down at the sleepy girl.

Rolling her tired eyes, shakes her head. "No I don't. I showered yesterday."

Valeria frowns. "No, you didn't. Yesterday, you were with me out in the fields."

Juno shrinks a little under Valeria's stare. "No, I went after dinner."

A gasp quickly leaves Val's mouth as she leans away from her. "Juno! You know you're not supposed to go at night!" She exclaims, standing up. "What if—"

"What if WICKED came, I know!" June interrupts her, sighing. "I'm able to handle myself, Val."

Valeria crouches down to brush some of the hair out of Juno's face. "I worry about you, my dear Junie." She sighs, pulling her hand back. "We all do."

Juno nods. "I'll be more careful next time." Stifling a yawn, Juno pulls the sheet back up to her neck. "I'm really tired today, Val. I think I'm gonna go back to sleep."

The woman pressed her lips into a thin line, but doesn't say anything. Nodding, Valeria leaves the small room without another word.

Sleep did eventually take over Juno's body and she —thankfully— found herself in a dreamless state.

But the blissfulness of sleep had to leave her eventually, and today she found herself being shaken awake by Brenda.

"You have to get up or you won't sleep tonight." Brenda says shortly, pulling her hand back from Juno's shoulder when the girl sits up.

Groaning, Juno pushes the blanket off her legs and moves to stand up. "What time is it?"

Brenda shrugs. "I don't know." Glancing outside quickly, she looks back to Juno. "Around four-thirty-ish." She begins to walk to the door. "Jorge sent me to wake you up."

Rolling her eyes, Juno follows Brenda out the door. "Of course he did." The two girls begin to walk. "He's such a dad."

"He can't help it." Brenda smiles. "You hungry?"

As if on cue, June's stomach growls. Smiling shyly, she looks down. "Starving."

**•••**

The group was meeting up after dinner, in the cover of darkness —though it wasn't necessary— to speak of an escape plan. Sometimes, these meetings were short and sweet, however sometimes they lasted longer. Tonight, Juno hoped it would pass quickly and she could seek the comfort of her bed once again.

Walking up the path to the warehouse, June pushes the metal door open to find her friends already waiting for her arrival. The heavy metal door slams shut behind her and a sharp pain shoots through her hand. "Fuck!" She cries out, pulling her hand up to cradle it against her chest. Her bottom lip quivers as she looks down to her fingers. Her fingers were quickly turning red as the ache seemed to intensify. The tears begin to blur her vision but she tries to blink them back.

Her eyes flicker over her friends quickly before June looks back down at her aching fingers. "Are you okay?" Thomas asks her. His question —the same one he asked last night— sends an all too familiar feeling of panic through Juno. Her facade slips, only for a moment, but her friends around her have already caught on.

"Yeah." Juno's voice cracks and the tears pooling in her eyes threaten to fall. Clearing her throat, she repeats herself loudly. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"June—" Brenda begins, taking a step forward.

"I'm fine!" Her voice cracks again under the pressure of everyone's eyes and she can feel her facade dropping. As the pain running through her fingers intensifies and her overbearing sadness seems to creep in, Juno finds the tears falling down her cheeks. A sob spills out of her mouth before she can stop it. Embarrassed, she twists on her heels quickly and rushes to the door. Struggling to open it for a moment, June finally yanks it open and rushes out quickly. Her feet move faster than her mind and she finds herself running for the safety of her bed. Here, she would be able to cry to her heart's content. The sadness that had loomed over Juno's head the past month, the sadness that simply _wouldn't_ leave, had pushed Juno to the edge. She had suppressed her feelings for too long and now that they were too much for her, they came bubbling to the surface, risking to overflow. And when Juno's fingers were crushed by the door, her emotions got the best of her. Hell, she certainly wasn't crying over her aching fingers. No, she was crying over every _single_ other thing in her life. Juno's sobs racked her body until she had no more tears left. Only then did she stop.


	16. Heat of the Moment

_the second month._

  
**JUNO HADN'T TOUCHED** Rosalyn's journal since Aris had found it. Whenever she found herself reaching for it, she stopped. The more she thought about it the less she wanted to read it. If she did read it, she would be putting herself through more pain. She would have to read through the deaths of her sisters, and that wasn't what she wanted.

So, pushing the damned thing out of her mind, Juno did anything she could to focus on something else. But even when she was immersing herself in plotting to get her friends back from WICKED, the book burned in the back of her mind.

However, the sticky heat that plagued the world was seemingly enough to pull the journal from her mind. Even now, as she actually tried to read it, she couldn't focus on anything but the distracting heat. And it seemed that all her friends had the same sentiments about the heat; they had all given up their jobs for the day. Instead, they all they all found themselves lounging in the shade cast by one of the nearby buildings. The cement was cool on Juno's back and though the little rocks in her back hurt, she was grateful for the small way to relieve herself from the heat. As the laughter died down from a joke Jorge had told, the air became thick. The short period of happiness that had followed the group for the morning was wearing off, and a serious tone was replacing it.

Frypan sits up, propping himself on her hands. "What if we're not all immune?" He asks. "Not, you, Brenda," The boy sends her an apologetic smile. "But like the kids in the Mazes. What if we're not all immune to the virus?"

Juno closes her eyes and sighs. "I mean, all the Maze kids can't be immune, right?" She sits up and crosses her legs as the attention is shifted to her. "How would WICKED know that we're all immune? They wouldn't expose us to the virus, because that would just be spreading it. It's just a guessing game."

"I wouldn't put it past WICKED to expose kids to the virus, just to know if they're immune or not." Brenda quips.

"It makes no sense for them to do that, though." June argues, sitting up straight. "WICKED isn't going to try and give kids the virus to see if they can withstand it. They aren't killing anyone. Yes, they're testing on them. And yes, they're hurting those kids, but they wouldn't willingly kill them." She scoffs. "Teresa may have betrayed us, but I did trust her at one point, and if she was willing to turn us over to WICKED then I'm certain they wouldn't kill us."

Newt sits up abruptly. "Why are you taking their side?"

Juno's eyes go round before she narrows them at the boy. "I'm not taking their side I'm just stating the facts!" She exclaims defensively.

"Really? Cause it sounds like you're siding with WICKED!" Newt scowls.

Thomas places a hand on Newt's shoulder. "Newt, just stop—"

Juno cuts Thomas off sharply. "No! Let him continue." She snarls.

"Do you even care about finding Minho? Or finding Leanne?" Newt pushes himself up to his feet. "Do you even care about them?"

Sadness clouds Juno's angry features as the two names leave Newt's mouth. "Of course I care!" The girl jumps up, and the people with them do the same. "I care!" Her voice doesn't waver as she speaks. She did not want to be pushed around because of her opinion. "I care so much it fucking terrifies me! I care so much that sometimes it's all I can think about. Finding them consumes my every thought. The guilt I feel... if only I had turned around! If I had simply looked over my shoulder, at least one of them would be with us right now!"

His eyes flash with anger. "You knew them for what? A full three or four days? You're pain is nothing compared to mine!"

"But my pain is still valid! Why are you acting like I'm not allowed to feel this way!" She throws her hands up into the air, then drops them. The tense air only seems to thicken as the seconds tick by. "You know what, Newt? Fuck you." Juno spits. "If you want to think that I don't care, and that I'm siding with WICKED, then you can. I'm not going to waste my time trying to convince you of something that's obviously not true. It's not worth it." She links her arm through Brenda's and begins to march away. "There's no point in trying to convince someone when their mind is already made up."

Once the two girls are out of the group's sight, a small smile tugs at Brenda's lips. "That was badass."

June rolls her eyes. "I feel kinda bad now..."

The smile is wiped off of Brenda's face quickly. Stopping in her steps, the doe-eyed girl grabs onto Juno's shoulders tightly, forcing her to look at her. "Never feel bad for standing up for yourself, Junie. He was accusing you of something _absolutely_ ridiculous and had no right to yell at you. You're allowed to be mad at him."

After a moment, June gives in. Nodding her head, she links her arm once more through Brenda's. "You're right. I shouldn't feel bad."

**•••**

_the third month._

The next month rolled by at a snail's pace, and Juno couldn't help but start to grow impatient. Somehow, at the beginning, they thought that saving Minho and Leanne would be a quick thing. However, that was obviously not the case. Now, Juno couldn't help but wonder how long it really would take.

Brushing the thoughts aside, Juno looks up as Thomas comes to sit next to her on the bench. Shutting the journal in her hands shut softly, she scoots over so he has more space. The silence between them stretches on for another minute before June scoffs. "What do you want, Thomas?" The boy looks over at her and smiles innocently. "I'm serious. I'm not doing any other favours for you. Last time I did Frypan pushed me into a puddle."

He shakes his head quickly. "I promise. No more pranks."

"Good." Juno visibly relaxes. "Then what do you want?"

Hesitating only slightly, the boy begins. "You like Newt, right?"

Juno's breath hitches in her throat. "I— well—" Stopping and inhaling deeply, she blurts out. "Yes. Why does that matter?"

"Well, he likes you too. So go talk to him."

"It's not that simple."

"Sure it is."

"God, Thomas. For someone who seems to know so much about liking another person, you sure are blind."

"I'm not blind." He retorts.

"Yes you are." She says bluntly. "You had three girls pinning after you and you couldn't even tell."

"What?" He frowns, shuffling from side to side uncomfortably.

"You're a dumbass."

"Whatever. I still think you should go talk to him."

"I'm not going to apologize to him when he's the one in the wrong, Thomas." Juno shakes her head. After guilt had washed over her again, and Brenda had given her another stern talking, June had stopped. She wasn't going to feel bad for standing up for herself. "I'm done putting myself down just so I can raise someone else up. I'm finally pulling myself together."

Thomas reaches over to pat her knee. "Good for you."

She swats his hand away. "You're such a weirdo." She narrows her eyes at him.

Thomas rolls his eyes in return. After another moment of contemplation, he speaks. "So... if he came to you, you two would make up and stop fighting?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe?" He exclaims. "Why not yes?"

"Cause he was a jerk, Tom. But I will consider it. Only if he approaches me though."

"You're so petty." Thomas scoffs.

It's June's turn to roll her eyes, reaching over to hit his arm. "You're such a brat."


	17. Open Eyes

_the fourth month._

**AS THE MONTHS** passed, Juno and Brenda had grown closer and closer. The two girls were so close that you would have thought that they had known each other for years. So it was no surprise to anyone when June and Brenda would lounge around together until late into the night. To Juno, spending time with Brenda meant spending time with Jorge. The two were a package deal, and Juno wasn't complaining as she slowly weaved her way into this package.

Right now, Juno founds herself humming quietly with an old map between her hands. To her right, Brenda was reading over some of WICKED's most recent movements, and to her left Jorge was laying with his eyes shut.

Plenty of other people occupied themselves in the large warehouse as the rain poured down harshly outside.

Cutting off her humming with a sigh, Juno lets the map fall onto her lap. "There's nothing here. I don't think they'd use any of these back roads, or the larger ones."

Brenda opens her mouth to respond when a throat being cleared catches their attention. Both girls turn their heads to see Newt standing a few feet away. His eyes meet Juno's and he offers a small smile.

Before June can say anything, Brenda slams her file down harshly. "She doesn't want to speak with you right now." The girl says defensively.

"But, I just—"

"Just leave it right now, hermano." Jorge sits up, his response much more friendly than Brenda's. The girl was glaring at Newt, and she didn't look like she was going to back down any time soon.

"Brenda." June warns, flicking the girl's arm. "Newt and I are going to talk." June stands up as Brenda opens her mouth to protest. "I'm going." She insists. Shutting her mouth, Brenda nods as she grumbles under her breath. Juno turns and nods to Newt, following him to an empty alcove of the large building.

After a moment of silence, Newt begins in her head. _I'm really sorry, June._ He sighs, running his hand through his hair and messing it up. June pushes down the urge to reach up and fix his hair. _I was just angry that WICKED had gotten them so easily, and I know that's no excuse can make up for what I accused you of._

Juno's shoulders slump as her body relaxes. _You made me feel guilty, and made me feel like my feelings didn't matter._

Newt presses his lips together. _And I'm sorry. Bloody hell, I never meant to make you feel that way._ Juno can't meet his eyes and Newt seems to notice that. _Junie, look at me._ When she finally meets his eyes, he speaks again. _I'm sorry._

June nods slowly. _It's okay. Well— how you acted isn't okay, but I'm just going to let it go._

 _Thank you._ He lets go of a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

 _Look, Newt. I am really sorry. God— this is hard for me to share but_... Juno cuts herself and pulls her bottom lip into her mouth.

 _We can start slow if you want._ Newt smiles reassuringly, sitting down against the wall. Juno sits down cross-legged across from him. "Why is it hard for you to share?" He asks aloud.

Her posture seems guarded as she begins to speak. "Because ever since I arrived in my maze, I was this bouncy girl who kept her emotions to herself and always helped others. This feeling was instilled in me since before I can remember." Huffing, she rolls her eyes. "Yeah, I want to share. But I'm scared to."

"Well, you can always tell me anything."

Rolling her shoulders back, June sits up a little straighter. "One of the reasons that I felt so guilty about Leanne is because the whole situation reminds me of Vera. She was a girl in my maze, who got caught when we were exploring WICKED's facility at night. She was with me one second, then I turned around and she wasn't. The whole thing was just so similar to how I lost Vera that it gnawed at me from the inside out. And I then, I overthink, and I worry myself."

Newt reaches out to grasp her small hand between both of his. "It wasn't your fault. It's WICKED's fault. None of us could've stopped it."

Juno nods slowly. She may not believe him now, but she would come to. She would come to believe him because she had to stop blaming herself. She had to let go of the pain she held, and it letting go of the blame included it she would release it. Her anger would dissipate and she would be able to see clearly, because in this cruel world she had to have her eyes open to survive.


	18. Reunions

_the death cure._

**THE PLAN WAS** so precise that even the minor detail was covered, but Juno was nervous. She was so nervous she could barely think, though a quick talking from Brenda snapped her out of that state and brought her back to reality. She should not have been worrying as much as she was, but she couldn't help it. At least now she was able to focus on her surroundings.

Sitting on a rock between Harriet and Frypan, Juno shifts uncomfortably. "They're late, and my ass hurts." She grumbles.

Frypan nudges her in the stomach with his elbow. "Quit whining. It won't do us any good, Junebug."

The brunette scrunches her nose up. "I hate that nickname."

"It's the only reason he uses it." Harriet tells her. "Fighting won't do ya any good either so you to better not start." She warns lowly.

June's stomach churns in worry. They had waited so long for this that it they messed it up now none of them would be able to forgive themselves. It had been six months and some of them still had not forgiven themselves for their friends' capture.

In the distance, they could finally hear the train, and the roaring of an engine. _The plan was in action._

Harriet, Frypan and Juno all shift in their spots before breaking apart to get into hiding.

"Brenda, we're coming up behind." Thomas' voice crackles over the walkie-talkie. "Keep 'em busy."

Crouched low beside Harriet, they wait. "How long do you think we'll have to wait?" June turns to Harriet.

"It shouldn't be too much longer." Harriet shrugs. "The train moves quickly, and if everything goes to plan they should be here soon."

"Hey Brenda, you got company." Thomas speaks through the radio.

"Thomas, you're on your own. Don't die." Brenda responds, then radio silence.

Sharing a glance with Harriet, Juno is slightly relieved to see that the girl is also nervous now. "I guess our plan is on it's way?" She asks.

Harriet nods before redirecting her gaze out to the desert below them. From their hiding spot, they watch the truck swerve around as they dodge bullets from the berg. Then, as planned, Brenda and Jorge reach the dead end.

Juno's hair whips around her face even with her hair in a ponytail, and she keeps having to push it from her eyes. _Damn_ , she thinks. _I should've cut it when I wanted to_.

 _Are you seriously thinking about cutting your hair at a time like this?_ Newt scoffs in her head.

 _Shouldn't you be focusing on something_? Juno replies sassily, watching as the armed men get off the berg. _Shit, I have to go_.

Brenda and Jorge stand with their hands up, and Juno clutches the gun in her hand tightly.

With the rest of them distracted, Juno and Harriet move behind them to sneak onto the berg. Creeping up and onto the ship, they both raise their guns when the pilot moves in his seat to get up.

"Hi." Harriet smiles tauntingly to the pilot.

Juno lowers her gun and grabs the man by the arm, aggressively pulling him up and towards the exit. She pushes him off the berg and into the hands of an awaiting Jorge, who smiles to Juno before pushing the man away and with his buddies.

Juno boards the berg again, watching as Frypan and a couple others collect the men's weapons before rejoining them on the berg. "Jorge, you can fly this thing, right?"

Jorge shrugs to the girl with a smirk on his face. "It shouldn't be too hard." He laughs.

Juno scoffs, clutching the back of Jorge's seat tightly as the berg takes off. _We're on our way, hang tight_.

 _Got it_. Thomas responds to June shortly.

As if he had done it a thousand times before, Jorge maneuvers the berg away from their trap and back towards the train. Over his shoulder, June watches below as the others get shot at.

"Alright, we're here!" Jorge yells.

Brenda and Frypan run back to open the hatch and lower the wire.

This was going to work; they were so close.

Watching nervously as WICKED's workers get closer, June's shoulders release their tension when she hears Thomas yell that they're clear.

Cheers of happiness and relief echo in the berg as they raise the train car, flying off to their current safe-haven.

**•••**

Newt couldn't havewelded the door open any slower, in Juno's opinion. Even when it finally opened, Juno was stuck at the back of the group, hesitating to enter. What excuse did she really have to enter the train car? Leanne? Cause if so Juno's remaining guilt taunted her, and made her feel unworthy of Leanne's friendship.

She was about to walk away when she heard a familiar voice cry out. Just the sound of the familiar voice breaks Juno's walls down and she can already feel the tears pooling in her eyes. Inhaling deeply, Juno hoists herself up into the train car, only pausing for a second when she sees them; Reese and Kiko. The air is knocked out of her chest as she falls towards the two girls, clutching them tightly. She can't stop her tears from falling as her eyes roam over the two; bruised and battered. They looked malnourished, just like everyone else in the train car but June was too preoccupied to focus on everyone else. Right now, her eyes could only see the two girls in front of her. She thought they were dead, she really did.

"I thought you were dead." Juno cries out softly. "I thought you were all dead." She shake her head, more tears falling. But she didn't feel shame for crying, because her two friends were crying too.

Kiko cracks a smile through her tears. "It's okay."

Juno's jaw clenches when her eyes fall to Reese. "Oh my God." She breathes out, her hand raising to brush her fingers over Reese's bruised neck.

Reese winces quickly before pushing the feeling down, but Juno notices and quickly retracts her hand. Standing straight, Juno's eyes move around the room quickly before she turns to Frypan beside her, who hands the brunette a pair of bolt cutters. Her hands shake lightly as she goes to cut it, but Newt shows up beside her, his hands moving to cover her own.

 _I'll do it, it's okay_. He sends her a tight-lipped smile before taking them from her hands and moving to cut the chains off Kiko, then Reese.

She forces a smile in return, then moves to help both her friends into standing positions. A crack resonates when June helps Kiko stand, but the girl waves her off. "I'm okay."

After helping them out of the train car, Juno turns to Newt, obviously searching for someone. She had seen Leanne reunite with Thomas and Newt, but she had yet to see Minho. "You guys go ahead, I'll be there soon." Juno smiles, gesturing for the girls to go to where the kids were positioning themselves.

Juno's eyes flutter around before she spots Newt walking in the direction of his room (shared with Thomas, Frypan, and a couple other boys Juno didn't know). She follows him quickly, but hesitates in the doorway.

Newt was sitting on the edge of his bed, elbows propped up on his knees with his head resting in his hands. He looks up after a moment, spotting Juno in the doorway. "Hey." He sends her a half-smile.

"Hi." She's unable to return the smile, and walks to stand in front of him.

A minute of silence passes, then Newt speaks up. "He wasn't there." He says shortly.

Juno's shoulders visibly drop, and her arms move to wrap around his body. His arms move around her waist and he hides his face in her stomach. She bites her lip to keep her tears at bay, though she feels Newt's tears wet her shirt. Running her fingers through his hair soothingly, Juno finds herself without words of comfort. What could she truly say? This had taken six months of planning. There was no promising it wouldn't take another six months of planning to get Minho back, and who knew what state the poor boy would be in by then.

"It's—" her voice cracks but she catches herself quickly. "We can get him back, Newt." She finally finds the words she's been searching for. "We can. We did it today, we can do it again." She nods, more to herself. His tears seem to have slowed but he doesn't pull away from Juno, instead tightening his arms around her body.

"June," he begins, not pulling away from her.

"You don't need to say anything." Juno shushes him quickly. Her fingers run through his hair before she stops, taking a step back and cupping his face. "I have to go to Reese and Kiko, but I'll come by later, okay?" He nods numbly, but his fingers grasp at the hem of her shirt in an attempt to keep her here. "Newt." She moves away from him again, turning away. But this time Newt grave a fistfull of Juno's shirt from behind and tugs her back to him, making her fall down beside him on the bed with a _thud_. A quiet shriek escapes her lips when she finds herself trapped between his arms.

"You could just stay here with me." Newt mumbles into the crook of her neck.

A huff of a laugh escapes June's lips. "What's with you being so clingy recently?" Her arms move to wrap around his torso. "Really? Like the other day when I was talking to Thomas y—"

Newt cuts her off with his hand over her mouth. "Just stop." He huffs, rolling his eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

A gasp leaves Juno's lips as she pushes the boy away. "Were you jealous?" He groans, shaking his head. "And of Thomas?" She laughs as his cheeks blush. "Of all people, him? He's already got three girls pinning for him, I'm not about to dig myself a grave." She gives him a lopsided grin. "Now, I have to go check on Reese and Kiko." With a quick kiss to his cheek she's standing and making her way to the door.

Juno looks back at Newt and her heart skips a few beats when she catches his eye. The way he was looking at her was enough to take her breath away; he would look at her like she was the centre of the universe and he was content just being in her orbit. Everything June couldn't remember about love, Newt had given to her. What she had possibly seen between two parents she couldn't remember, what he couldn't even remember, they could give to eachother   
  
  


Mia Goth **_as_** Reese  
Paige Hurd **_as_** Kiko


	19. Golden Boy

**SEATED ACROSS FROM** Reese and Kiko, Juno couldn't help but let her eyes wander over their injuries. Even the bruises she couldn't see were screaming in her face, just like the guilt.

The guilt hit her in the chest the hardest every time she looked over at them. The bruises, their shattered personalities, it placed the blame on her. June almost cried when she reached out to hug Reese and the girl winced away from her touch before returning it. She wasn't wincing in pain she was wincing in fear and the thought alone sent Juno spiralling.

She breathes in a shakily, her fingers drumming against her thigh. "I'm so sorry I left you. I'm so so sorry."

"It's okay. It's okay. We're here now." Kiko smiles sympathetically, but Juno can't bring herself to believe her.

They were _broken_. WICKED had hurt her friends, and from the beginning she had been right. She had known, and if she had simply followed her gut more of them would be here right now. The words she searches for feel so foreign in her mind. There was no way to speak of this lightly, but every bone in Juno's body wanted to know. She was just desperate for answers.

"What about Luna? Where is she?" The words sit heavy on her tongue like honey, though not as sweet. Nothing about this was sweet; instead it was dark, thick and sticky.

"She's gone, June." The bitter words pierce the air with an underlying anger and the coldness nips at Juno's skin — everything looped back around to her for the blame.

June swallows thickly, her eyes meeting the ground. This was all her fault. It was. She had left them and now she had lost more of them. "How?"

Sadness clouds Kiko's features, and Reese's eyes can't meet Juno's. Neither girls want the words to tumble out of their mouths, and June can't blame them.

As the silence sits over them, Juno almost wants to take back her question. Maybe she didn't want to know how it happened, but it was too late because Kiko was already opening her mouth to mutter the unwanted words. "We were fighting back, and she got hit in the head, _hard_."

Maybe the answer was supposed to give her closer, or make her feel better, but it didn't. It was artificial and left a sour taste in her mouth. This false hope was rancid and Juno was tired of relying on it.

**•••**

Nothing about the raging sea below Juno was soothing. It was rough and choppy, but it was beautiful. The black water sparkles in the moonlight and Juno could only ever hope to look as beautiful as the wild water.

Leanne was just as beautiful, and no one could deny that. Though her eyes were glassy and her dark hair flew in every direction, she could still outshine the stars in the sky. At least, she could before WICKED had captured her. But now, looking at her friend, Juno could only see a shell of the woman she once was. Leanne was just as broken and bruised as Reese and Kiko —if not worse— and it hurt Juno to see that.

However, she had to face her demons. So here she was, walking up to sit beside Leanne on the large rocks above the black sea. "I'm sorry I didn't come to see you earlier." Juno sighs, shaking her head. "I guess I was just overemotional." That wasn't a lie; seeing not only her friends, but other kids condemned to a life of horrors had shaken June.

A long silence sits between the two friends, and if Juno couldn't find comfort in the sea, then she could find comfort in this silence. It wasn't often that she could sit in silence and not feel the need to fill it, but here she was.

Perhaps Leanne doesn't share that sentiment as she turns June. "You like him." She states bluntly.

It's like the air is knocked out of Juno's lungs as she searches for the right words. "I— well— what?" She wasn't quite sure what words she should be searching for. Did she want to deny Leanne's statement, or would she simply tell the truth?

Leanne rolls her eyes and Juno feels her heartbeat quicken in anticipation. "Well you have feelings for Newt."

Then, without thought, she nods. Something that she hadn't even admitted to the boy himself before, she was admitting to Leanne. She wasn't used to this in any way possible; it's not like there were any boys in her Maze. Of course, some of the girls found themselves drawn to other girls in the Maze; maybe it's what Juno had seen today between Reese and Kiko — without realizing it. But Juno wasn't one of those girls. She never did crushes, not until Newt. "Yeah... I mean... I'm not really trying to stop them anymore." She sighs. "I could say the same about you, though. You like Thomas."

Leanne smiles softly. "I don't like Thomas, June." Said girl knits her brows together in confusion. Leanne didn't like Thomas? Since when? Because six months ago the girl was infatuated. She hears Leanne release a breathe and waits. "I love him."

Juno's head turns to look at Leanne so quickly she gives herself whiplash. "Are you sure?" Her hand shoots up to rub her neck. Could Leanne truly love Thomas? Maybe, but how could Juno really know? Right now, all she felt was worry for her friend. What if she was jumping into things she didn't understand? And so, June speaks up about her worry. "You're not just desperate for love, or something? Cause Newt told me about how you liked a guy named Gally in your Maze and—"

Leanne interrupts her friend quickly. "Urgh of course Newt would tell you." She groans. "Whatever. It's not like that."

With a nod, June sighs. "Whatever it's like, you should be careful." It wasn't her place to question Leanne's feelings. She could offer insight — though let's be honest, what did Juno really know about love? Not much, but at times like this she knew the feeling could be dangerous. "We've still got a war to fight."

The crunch of someone's footsteps makes both of them quiet down. Their both watch as the figure gets closer, finally close enough for them to realize it's Thomas. _Speak_ _of the devil_. June stands up (very ungracefully), and smiles to Leanne. "I'm going to go see Reese and Kiko."

**•••**

It wasn't a lie; she did go to Reese and Kiko. But before she could enter the room where both girls resided, June found herself hesitating outside. She could see into the window from a few feet away, unseen with a view of everything. The two girls were laying in bed together, whispering between eachother and watching this made Juno's heart quiver. She could never be the same comfort she once was to them; how could she? She had left them and nothing could ever fix that. There was never a calm before the storm in Juno's life; it was a constant storm, raging, frightful and unmerciful, and the worst thing about this storm was that she was at the center of it.

Then, like the clouds parted to reveal the shining sun, there were footsteps approaching and Newt stepped forward, gesturing to June that it was time for the meeting. Nothing about the meeting was shiny and golden, but everything about Newt was and that was enough motivation for June to get up and follow him towards the warehouse, hand in hand.


	20. The Meeting

**THE ROOM WAS** dark and musty, though the smell of mold was not what hit June first when she entered the warehouse alongside Newt. Instead, it was the disagreement that hung in the air and tugged at Juno's heartstrings. It was sitting heavily, waiting to be brought up and Juno wanted no part in it. This meeting was going to be a drag and she knew it immediately; no real outcome would be found tonight.

Leaving Newt's side, June walks across the room quietly to stand beside Brenda. Jorge stands on Brenda's other side and sends the girls a small smile when Thomas struts into the room, a map in hand. He quickly approaches the table in the middle and slams the map down on the table aggressively. "There, that's it." He points to a circle on the map. "It's a few hundred miles." He looks back down at the map. "Based on the railways, everything that Aris told us, that's gotta be where they're headed. That's where they're taking Minho." Thomas looks at Vince, and only Vince. He knows that the older man is going to be hard to convince. "We take everyone who can fight. Follow the roads where we can. We can make it back within a week."

A week was a bit of a stretch — everyone here knew that, though Vince was the only one to scoff and shake his head. "A week? It took us six months to get here. We got over 100 kids here now." The man held a sense of responsibility and Juno could understand. When she was in her maze, she held the same responsibility, paired with maturity. Though not the eldest in her maze, she was one of the older girls and the younger ones looked up to her. Vince was in charge and thus was looked up to, and he had to make a decision for the best of the Right Arm. "We can't just hang out here forever after what we just pulled. You wanna wander off to some random point on the map." He jabs his finger towards the circle on the map. "You don't even know what's there."

"I do." Jorge steps further into the room. "It's been a few years, but I've been there." He nods. "The Last City. That's what WICKED called it." She and Brenda share a look; neither had heard of this before. "It was their whole base of operations. If that city is still standing, that's the last place you wanna go, hermano." Vince finally nods his head, agreeing with Jorge. "That's the lion's den."

"It's nothing we haven't done before." Thomas speaks back to them.

June shakes her head; it was everything they hadn't done before. Never had they attempted to break into a city run by WICKED, instead they had spent their time running from them and then hijacked one of their trains. Nothing more, though that was oversimplifying things. A lot.

"Yeah, with months of planning, and reliable information, the element of surprise, none of which we have now." Vince argues in return, shaking his head quickly.

"Vince, I've thought this through. Would you just hear me out?"

"The last time we went off half-cocked... I lost everything." Vince slams his hand on the table. "You remember that?"

June's blood begins to boil in her veins — he lost everything, and they just about lost everything too. This was their chance to get back what they had lost, and Vince was holding them back from it. She could understand not wanting to endanger others, but they were willing to put themselves at risk and Vince wasn't allowing them to. Something in Juno finally snaps, just like the sharp words that escape her mouth. "The last time we went off half-cocked, it's because we were ambushed. We didn't even know they were coming." She steps forward to take part in the conversation.

"Well they'll know we're coming. It wouldn't be a surprise." Vince sighs, shaking his head. "Look, I know it's Minho. All right? But you can't ask me to put those kids on the line for one man." He shakes his head again. "I won't do it."

"This isn't just Minho." Juno snaps again, taking another step towards the table in the middle. "You said it yourself, we've got over a hundred kids here now. And we do because we went to get Aris, Sonya, Minho and Leanne." Juno rolls her shoulders back with determination. "It isn't just Minho." She says softly this time. "We could help more kids, just like today."

Before anything else can be said, the airwaves on the radio behind Newt begin to make louder noises, and quickly enough they can hear the voices clearly. "Searching the grid now. A is completed. Scanning B-sector now."

"Shit." People exclaim.

Jorge runs to pull a large lever, leaving them in darkness. Juno's hand falls down to catch Brenda's, and the two girls maneuver their way out of the warehouse carefully. They walk in silence before making it to their room. June falls down onto her bed dramatically and Brenda sits on the end of her bed cross-legged.

June huffs. "You think he'll be able to convince Vince?"

Brenda sits in silence, resting his chin in her hands. She was carefully constructing her response and Juno could tell. She opens her mouth and closes it a couple times before finally giving in. "I'm not sure..." She frowns. "Maybe he shouldn't."

June's head snaps up towards Brenda, but she doesn't speak. Maybe Brenda was right, and maybe Vince was right for refusing to help them.

This was Minho, but endangering these kids was an entirely different thing. Of course, they could always go alone, but what it WICKED captured them? They could get all of the Right Arm's information out of them, though she was sure it would take a ton of prying. But again, this was Minho, and alongside saving Minho they could save other kids.

June nods slowly, though she's sure Brenda can't see her in the darkness of the night. Kicking her shoes off, June lays back in bed. "Goodnight, Bren." She says softly.

"Goodnight, Ju."

**•••**

Leanne was gone, Thomas was gone, Frypan was gone and Newt was gone.

June had woken up early this morning, and had gone to find Leanne and ask her about how things went with Thomas the might before. When she reached the girl's room, she found her bed empty. So, June had gone to Thomas' shared room; empty, save for the boys June didn't know.

It feels like her entire world is spinning, but June stops to concentrate on one thing.

 _Newt, I swear to fucking god if you've gone off and done something stupid without me I'm going to kill you._ She hisses, then waits for a response.

After the longest thirty seconds of her life, Newt responds. _Well then, I'm as good as dead._

After that, she feels the link broken. _Newt?_ She calls out. _Newt?_ No response. _Thomas?_

No answers.

Juno feels like her mind is running fast and her feet are dragging when she runs through the camp. Turning a corner, she rushes towards where Jorge is bent over the popped hood of his car, tinkering.

"Brenda!" Juno calls out and said girl pops her head out of the car, where she was reading. Jorge looks towards a visibly distraught June, and waits for her to continue. "They're gone." She pants. "Lea, Newt, Thomas and Frypan. They left."

Brenda rolls her eyes and Jorge scoffs. "They're going to the city." Jorge says as a-matter-of-factly.

"They're a bunch of idiots if they think they can manage alone." Brenda shakes her head. "So, are we gonna go?"

"Go back your bags, girls." Jorge smirks. "We're going on a road-trip."


	21. Together

**STRETCHED OUT ACROSS** the back seat, Juno occupied herself with a book Brenda had recommended her. Over time, as the two girls grew closer, they had begun to share everything.

One thing they did not share, however, was their patience. June was ready the book to keep her mind off of things; she was nervous and kept asking Jorge if he could drive any fast. Brenda, on the other hand, seemed calm and collected. The doe-eyed girl sat idly, watching the scenery roll by.

Throwing down the book carelessly, June sits up and leans between the front seats. "How far did you say the checkpoint was?" She asks Jorge.

The man rolls his eyes. "We're close."

Thank God for that, because if she had to wait any longer she might combust. June's patience was running thin and it was only a matter of time before she kicked Jorge to the backseat and began driving herself; and she had no idea how to drive. The first hour of driving, Jorge had used the time to try and teach the girls the general idea of it. It wasn't hard, but after arguing because he wouldn't let them get behind the wheel they put it to rest. Though, Jorge was sure that Brenda would be a much better driver than Juno; the latter was usually calm and friendly, but there was no doubt in Jorge's mind that Juno could become agressive if she wanted to.

She watches from the back as they approach a sign that reads:

MANDATORY INFECTION CHECK: 2 MILES AHEAD

"You think they're there?" Brenda asks.

Neither Jorge nor Juno speak; did she mean their friends, or the people running the infection check? They would get their answer soon though.

As they rolled up to the infection checkpoint, the first thing that was obvious to them was that it was abandoned. The second thing obvious to them, was that cranks were for sure in the tunnel.

"You think they went in there?" Juno frowns, eyeing the tunnel distastefully.

Brenda looks down at the map in her lap. "It's the fastest way to the city, so yeah, they went in there."

Then, there was the sound of gunshots.

Jorge hit the gas quicker than he ever had before and Juno was sent flying forward in her seat. She catches herself on the passenger seat in front of her, but barely.

They were in there. That had to be them; who else would be trying to get to the city and go through there?

Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness, June saw the cranks. They were all headed towards the gunshots, but some of them were turning to them when they heard the truck.

"Brenda, open the top. Juno, climb up front, they're gonna need the room." Jorge yells to them as he swerves to miss a crank.

With difficulty, Juno ungracefully plops down into the passenger seat, and Brenda shuffles to open the roof skylight and stands up, gun in hand.

The gunshots stop and through the darkness Juno can make out her friends, fighting the approaching cranks. They're surrounded, but Jorge presses on the gas even harder and rams into the cranks.

He stops the car and June can see Brenda wave as she yells for them to get in. They quickly file into the truck, yelling for Jorge to go when they're all seated.

Jorge presses on the gas, ramming through any remaining cranks. The end of the tunnel comes into view and the speed out. Brenda sits back down, half squishing Juno against the door half sitting on her legs.

"I'm impressed!" Jorge says from the driver's seat. "You guys almost lasted a whole day."

Juno rolls her eyes, shifting to glance back at them. Brenda glares at them as she shakes her head.

"I'm sorry. I didn't wanna bring you guys into this." Thomas sends them a small smile.

Jorge looks through the rear view mirror, just as unimpressed with Thomas' excuse as Brenda, and Juno turns her head around to scoff at Thomas.

 _That's the best you can do?_ She asks sarcastically to him.

Frypan leans forward between Newt and Thomas. "I think what he's trying to say is thanks for saving us."

Brenda smiles. "You're welcome."

_Sorry._

Thomas sends June a smile and she rolls her eyes, glancing over at Brenda to share an unimpressed look. June looks back at the passengers of the truck and catches Newt's eye. A small frown tugs at his lips as he watches her.

 _You okay?_ She asks him, cutting her link with Thomas.

 _Yeah, fine._ Newt's eyes move to look out the window. There was an underlying bitterness to his words, and though small it hit Juno quickly. _You?_

 _Fine_. She turns back around in her seat, her own frown tugging at her lips. She shrugs it off to look across Brenda at Jorge.

Jorge shakes his head, glancing at them every couple seconds through the rear view mirror. "Hey, don't get your hopes up." They watch him speak. "That checkpoint back there, that was the city's last defense. If that was overrun, chances are the city is, too."

"Yeah, unless they figured out some other way to keep the Cranks out." Newt says.

Juno turns to look outside, but she and Brenda fly forward in the seat when Jorge slams on the breaks. After stabilizing themselves, the two girls climb out of the vehicle and walk around, to look out at the city below them.

Large skyscrapers stand in the middle of the city, surrounded by smaller ones. The sun shimmers of the glass buildings, sparkling. Around the sparkling city, one large wall circles it. It was built around the thriving part of the city, cutting out the decaying parts of the city.

Juno gapes at the city; well, they were screwed. There was no way they were going to find a way in. Not easily, at least. This was going to take some time.

"Funny... Spent three years trapped behind walls, trying to break out, and now we wanna break back in." Newt shakes his head.

From behind them, Frypan adds. "Yeah. It's hilarious."

Leanne scoffs. "It doesn't matter. He's in there." She mumbles.

"How do you know for sure?" Brenda asks her quietly as Thomas questions Jorge.

Leanne looks over at the girl before looking back out at the city. "Because I was supposed to be there too."

June watches with a small smile on her face as Brenda pats Leanne on the back, attempting to be comforting but just being awkward. She was happy the two were at least trying to be friends.

"Those walls are new." Jorge sighs. "I guess that's WICKED's answer for everything."

Juno huffs out in annoyance — so there was no way Jorge could help them, he didn't know the city anymore.

Brenda begins to walk back to the car. "Well, we ain't gonna figure it out form up here. Let's go!" She approaches Juno, linked her arm through hers. "You good?"

"Yeah." June nods unconvincingly. Brenda sends her a warning look, and June lowers her voice to respond to the girl. "This isn't going to be easy." She mumbles, glancing back at Newt, Thomas and Leanne, who still stare out at the city. "We might not all—" June cuts herself off again, shaking her head. She couldn't even say the words.

Though, at least this time when she left Kiko and Reese behind she was leaving them in safe hands and putting herself in harms way, instead of the other way around. That was the only thing that brought comfort to her right now; the idea that they were safe. That at least a part of her family would surely live; the rest of them... there was no telling how far they would get. But, they had eachother, and that was enough for June to know that they could still get far. As long as they had eachother.


	22. New Allies

**A CITY OF** dust and dirt, consisting of rutted road and baked buildings; the shimmering city's outskirts were nothing more than that. Everything there was grimy and colourless, and Juno couldn't help but feel like the sun had not only dried out the cracking roads but the happiness as well. Everyone looked absolutely miserable, and June was beginning to understand why.

The crowded streets did nothing to sooth June's throbbing heart; some people were laying on the sidewalks, others selling objects or food, and some were even throwing body bags into the back of their truck.

June and Brenda walked closely into Jorge's heels, their arms linked. "This place has really gone through hell." He points out, leading the way throw the bustling crowd.

"We just gotta stay together."

Behind them, someone speaks throw a microphone. "We are the voice of the voiceless!" Multiple men with guns and masks covering their faces are standing in a truck, driving up the street. "They hide behind their walls, thinking they can keep the cure for themselves, while they watch the rest of us wither and rot!" The crowd around them parts for the truck and cheers as they pass. "But there are more of us than there are of them. And I say, we rise up and take back what is ours! Let's bring back a victory!"

"Jesus." June mumbles to herself. This wasn't what they had expected — though she wasn't sure what they had really expected.

Death hung in the clouds, unseen, premature and shameful. Blood floated in the air, poisoning their lungs. The city was past saving and June began to wonder what the inside of the city looked like.

Her eyes are pulled away from a pile of body bags and up towards the wall when it comes into sight. It was even bigger up close, and impenetrable. The wall was intimidating, with its height and weapons placed upon it.

There were people rioting, chanting for WICKED to let them in. Some people hold signs, others stand to the side, simply watching.

Jorge pushes his way through the crowd with Thomas at his side and Brenda and June close behind them.

"What the hell did we get ourselves into?" Frypan asks.

Something not good, that's for sure.

June's eyes can't seem to pull away from the wall; large guns sit on top of it, unmoving though just their appearance is frightening. June's heart feels like it's beating out of her chest and she clutched Brenda's arm tighter. The girl feels June's tightening grip and squeezes her arm reassuringly.

Then, Newt and Leanne push past them to catch Jorge's attention. "Hey, guys, we gotta go now." He tells them. "Look." He gestures behind them, and they turn to see a masked man, similar to the ones on the vehicle passing by earlier.

Jorge pulls the gun out of his jacket, but loud noises from the wall stop them quickly. Around them, everyone quiets down and directs their attention to urge wall. Then, the large guns settled on top begin to shift. Their positions changes so that they're pointing towards them. People begin to yell around them, screaming to run.

"We gotta get out of here!"

Then without warning the first missile is fired, landing not far in front of them. June feels her bones shatter at the deafening sound. She and Brenda let go of eachother, clasping their hands together as they run. Dust and sand fly up into the air, and the air is knocked out of her lungs as her vision blurs. She's shoved aggressively down an alley, losing Brenda's hand in the process. Beside her, Jorge clutches at Juno's jacket, but that's not the only pair of hands on her. Another pair of large hands are placed on her arms and she's pulled away from Jorge. Screams escape her lips but the person moves faster than her, lifting her up into a van next to a fighting Jorge.

"Don't touch her!" He yells to one of the men, who push June down onto the van floor. "Hey! I said don't touch her!"

The driver begins to yell at them to subdue Jorge, which neither of the two men can manage to do. He yells at them to stay away from June, and asks about where Brenda is.

"Jorge, stop. Jorge." June grabs at the man's arm, pulling him down to sit next to her. He pants heavily, watching the masked men with crazy eyes and June knows for sure that if he attacks again she won't be able to stop him.

Almost like she triggered it, Jorge lunges for the man again, and neither of the two masked men can stop him either. Yells are loud in the van and in June's ears as she feels the van come to a slow. She can just barely hear voices outside, though she can't understand them due to Jorge's yelling. One man lets go of Jorge to handle June but she elbows him hard in the groin and kicks the door open. Jorge throws the masked man out of the van and jumps out onto him, whilst June kicks her captor one more time before joining Jorge outside.

"Where is she, you son of a bitch!" He yells, throwing another punch at the man's face.

Juno's eyes roam over their audience before landing on Brenda. Their eyes meet and June sends her a pleading look, gesturing to Jorge.

Both Brenda and Thomas run to Jorge and pull him off the man. "I'm right here! I'm right here!" Brenda yells, stopping Jorge and making him turn to her.

Jorge seems to calm down at this and nods before his eyes begin to move across them quickly again. "June?" He mumbles.

She steps up to stand beside him and tugs on his sleeve. "Here." She says reassuringly.

"Everybody relax." One of the masked men says. "We're all on the same side here."

"What do you mean same side?" Thomas frowns, taking a step towards the man who spoke. "Who the hell are you?"

The masked man looks down, then looks back over at the group. He reaches up and takes his mask off, throwing it to the ground. "Hey, Greenie."

A wave of confusion passes through June before understanding settles in. She had heard that name before. Frypan had used the term —greenie— when talking to Thomas.

"Gally?" Thomas frowns before launching himself at the boy, punching him hard in the face. The two fall over as Thomas goes to hit Gally again, but Leanne runs to stop him. The two speak in hushed tones together.

Someone joins June's side and she looks up to see Newt. _The Gally from your Maze, right?_

 _Yes._ Newt's eyes meet her own. _Are you okay?_

June's eyes widen in surprise _. I should be asking you that. You just found out an old friend is alive._

 _Well, he's probably different now._ Newt's words are muttered in her head. She reaches over to hold his hand just as Leanne and Thomas join their sides once more.

Gally stands up and rubs his jaw where Thomas punched him. "Kinda had that coming." His eyes wander over the group. "Anybody else? Fry? Lea? Newt?"

"You know this guy?" Jorge asks.

Frypan speaks for their friends. "He was an old friend."

Newt watches Gally weirdly, almost as if he would disappear at any second. It felt unreal to him and Juno could tell. "How? How is this possible?" He asks. "We watched you die."

"No, you left me to die." Gally shakes his head. "And if we hadn't found you when we did, you'd be dead right now." His eyes wander over the group. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Minho. WICKED has him here." Newt explains shortly.

"We're looking for a way in." Leanne adds.

"I can help with that." Gally says. "Follow me." Gally turns to begin to walk away, but he stops when Thomas speaks.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." Thomas doesn't move.

"Suit yourself. But I can get you through those walls."

After a moment of contemplation, Newt moves first, tugging Juno with him. The rest of the group follow not far behind them.

 _Hey_. She smiles encouragingly up at Newt. _He'll help us. We can get him back._ She squeezes his hand.

Newt nods, but doesn't answer the girl. He wasn't just worried about saving Minho anymore — he was worried about much more. She just didn't know it yet.

Ahead of them, Gally dives into his story. "After the maze, I got picked up by a group headed to the city." He speaks loudly to be heard over the people they pass. "They realized I was immune, patched me up, and they brought me here to Lawrence. This group's been at war with WICKED ever since they took control of the city." He turns down a series of hallways. "But WICKED can't hide behind those walls forever. Day's gonna come, and they're gonna pay for what they've done." He stops in front of a hall, and turns to look at them all. "Listen, uh, he doesn't get a lot of visitors. So, let me do the talking. All right?" Gally nods, turning down the hall. "And try not to stare."

They're left in confusion to follow him to the end of the hallway and down a set of stairs, into a large room. In the middle of the room, a man stands in front of a rosebush, trimming it. Gally leads them towards the man, stopping a couple feet away.

"Gally, glad to see you made it back." The man greets, turning to look at them. They can't see his features very well in the shadows.

"It was a slaughter." Gally says shortly to the man. "There's nothing we could do against those guns."

The man cuts the rose off of its stem. "No, but they can only poke the hornet's nest so long before they get stung." He raises it to his nose, and Juno squints lightly from over Newt's shoulder, suddenly aware of the lack of an outline of a nose on his face. "Now, who are these people? Why are they here?"

Thomas steps forward. "We need to get into WICKED." He glances over at Gally. "Gally said you can get us through the walls."

The man, who June can only infer is Lawrence, looks up at them before back down at the roses in front of him. "Gally should know better than to make promises that he can't keep." Lawrence grabs onto his IV and walks towards them. "Besides, that wall is only half your problem. Getting inside WICKED is impossible."

"There might be a way now." Gally says. "But it doesn't work without Thomas."

"Is that so?" Lawrence takes a few steps into the light to reveal his face. "Do you know what I am... Thomas?" Half his face was covered in veins, poking out similarly to some cranks. Where his nose should have been was an empty hole, and his eyes were sunken into his face. He gets close to Thomas' face. "I am a businessman." He steps back. "Which means that I don't take unnecessary risks. Why should I trust you?"

Maybe he shouldn't trust them, but what could they really do against him and his people? They were armed, and they knew the city. If anyone should be doubting someone's trust, it should have been them doubting Gally and his promises.

"Cause I can help you." Thomas speaks slowly to the man. "You see, if you can get me through those walls... I can get you what you need."

"What is it that you think I need?"

"Time. Every last drop."

Lawrence's eyes roam over the group. "Is that what I need?"

Juno holds her breath as his eyes flutter over her, but they move on quickly. There was something about him that June couldn't put a finger on, and whatever it was, it certainly wasn't good.

His eyes find their way back to Thomas. "WICKED has something we both want." Thomas says.

Lawrence considers his options for a moment. "I'll tell you what. Two can go for now. But I get to pick who." His eyes wander over the group. "The rest stay down here with me. Just a little insurance to make sure you find your way back. We have a deal?" Thomas glances back at the group, before looking up at Lawrence.

"Gally, show 'em the way."


	23. Drunk Love

**LEANNE, EVER THE** negotiator, had managed to convince Lawrence to let her accompany the boys into the city. June stood back, sending an encouraging smile to Leanne before turning to Newt.

She pulls him to the side. "Are you sure you're good?" She frowns, hands clutching his jacket.

Newt placed his hands on June's arms, rubbing up and down reassuringly. "Yeah, I'm good." He whispers in return. "Don't worry about me." A quick kiss is pressed to her forehead before Newt lets her go and follows Leanne down the ladder into the sewers.

June finds herself wandering towards Brenda and Jorge, who both send her small smiles. "They'll be fine." Brenda pats June on the back, nodding.

"If they don't kill eachother first, then yeah." June responds sarcastically.

Brenda and Jorge both share a look before each grasping one of June's arms and tugging her towards a room where they were instructed to wait for their friends' return.

She had that twinge in my stomach, like she was doing something wrong. But she wasn't doing anything. Maybe that was it, she was here, safe and sound, sitting still and perfect while her friends were out there, risking to get caught by WICKED. Again.

June would never peg herself as the type to go running off looking for trouble. Not before she met Leanne and her gang of friends. But now, it seemed they may have been rubbing their dangerous tendencies off on June. God, she never imagined life outside her Maze like this, but here they were, running towards the bad-guys after running away from them for so long.

Even after Gally, Thomas, Newt and Leanne had returned, June was anxious. Whether it was her fingers drumming against her thighs, or her playing with the hem of her shirt, she was always fidgeting now.

Right now, she was picking at her nails, standing to the side of the room, between Brenda and Leanne, while Gally informed them of what he showed their friends.

And, oh Lord, June already hated the plan. She would have preferred they use no one to get what they want, but that would never work. Of course, she knew they would need someone from the inside working with them, but Teresa of all people, the girl who had already betrayed them once? June wasn't certain they could trust the girl; there was no reassuring Teresa wouldn't turn on them again.

It was silent in the room, and they were waiting for someone to speak. Gally's words were still ringing in Juno's head; We're going to use Teresa to get us in.

It was a bitter melody in her ears on repeat; sour and unwelcome. She just wanted everything to be over again, but she didn't want to end things like this. There had to be a better way to get them inside. Any other way. Just not Teresa.

Thomas speaks first, shaking his head quickly as a sign of distaste. "No. There's gotta be another way."

"Like what?" Gally gestures towards the schematics of the building on the table in middle of the room. "You've seen the building. She is our only way in."

June hadn't seen the building, but while they were out she had been looking over the blueprints, and even from that she could tell it was a huge building, and heavily guarded."

Thomas rolls his eyes. "You really think she's gonna help us?"

Gally shrugs. "I don't plan on asking for her permission."

"Am I missing something here? This is the same girl who betrayed us, correct?" Brenda exclaims. "Same dick?"

"I like her." Gally nods

"What's going on?" Brenda frowns.

And there was the difference between Brenda and Juno; Brenda knew how to keep her emotions out of her plans. She knew how to compartmentalize it all. June didn't — her emotions clouded her vision and she wasn't sure she would be able to go through with this plan.

Newt looks up from the table. "What, are you afraid your little girlfriend's gonna get hurt?" He looks up at Thomas, who doesn't speak. "Hmm? Because this has obviously never been just about rescuing Minho. Has it?" He asks, beginning to get annoyed with Thomas.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Thomas frowns.

"Teresa." Newt stands up straight and turns to face Thomas. "She's the only reason that Minho's even missing in the first place. Now we finally have an opportunity to get him back. And what? You don't want to because of her?" Newt speaks quickly, taking a step closer to Thomas. "Because deep down inside you still care about her, don't you? Just admit it."

Thomas shakes his head. "Newt, I..."

Newt pushes Thomas back against the wall. "Don't lie to me!"

June's eyes fall to the ground quickly, not wanting to watch the interaction any longer. She knew something had been wrong with Newt, and now she understood. She wasn't stupid, or oblivious, she knew what was going on. But it was still scary, seeing Newt lash out like this. He had always been the level-headed one, taking things with calculated steps.

"Sorry." Newt mumbles, turning away from Thomas. "I'm sorry."

•••

"When did it happen?"

Newt jumps at June's voice, not having heard her approach him down the dark hallway. His head whips up to look at her, a grimace etched into his features. "Does it matter?"

June huffs softly, sliding down to sit across from Newt. "I guess not." Her eyes fall down to look at her hands in her lap. How could she look at him? How could she just sit here, knowing he was dying. She didn't know.

"Hey." He nudges her foot with his own, causing her to look up at him. His mouth opens, then closes; he doesn't know what to say. Neither of them do, because neither of them want to lie. Instead of speaking, Newt spreads his bent knees apart and opens his arms wide, gesturing for her to come over. She doesn't hesitate to crawl over and settle herself between his legs, leaning her back against his chest as his arms fall to wrap around her body.

June realizes that it wasn't that they didn't know what to say, it's that they didn't need to say anything. She knew, just as he did, that they would try their hardest to get a cure. She knew that they wouldn't give up until they dropped dead, but she also knew that that wouldn't be the outcome. They would get out of this together, alive. They had to.

She couldn't imagine what she would do if she lost Newt. She had completely shut down after they lost Minho and Leanne, and they hadn't been killed, they had simply been captured. God, she couldn't imagine it. She didn't want to imagine it. She was happy to sit in his arms, in the dark hallway, mind blank and not a care in the world. Not right now, at least.

There was an awkward shuffle where June twists her body around so she's facing Newt. Her eyes move over his features, watching the small confused smile that lifts his lips.

"What are you doing?" He asks, hands falling to her waist.

"Hush, I'm just looking at you." She whispers, hands steadying herself on his shoulders.

"Why?" His voice is now a whisper, copying her.

She tugs her bottom lip into her mouth and a small frown creases her forehead. "I just want to remember everything." Her quiet voice sends a jolt of heartbreak through the two, but neither of them speak again.

His eyes flutter between both of hers, then down to her lips. June could feel the butterflies in her stomach going crazy, and she almost rolled her eyes. Was this what Brenda's books spoke about? That cheesy, all-the-time-in-the-world kind of love that was never really everlasting? Could this be it, with Newt?

She leans in, taking control and planting her lips on his firmly for their first real kiss. They had kisses before, but never on the lips. Usually, quick kisses to the forehead, cheeks or neck were enough of a comfort. June had a tendency to run her hands through Newt's hair a the nape of his neck whenever she was comforting him, just as she was doing now.

It was everything that June could have hoped for. This was it. That crazy-drunk love that would drive her insane. Except that a bitter feeling pooled in the bottom of her stomach; was this a goodbye kiss?

They moves slowly, as if they had all the time in the world to lose themselves to eachother; an eternity shoved into the hours they stole together.

"I'm scared." He admits quietly when they pull away from eachother.

She doesn't move away after she rests her forehead on his because she's just as scared. She doesn't dare move, or flinch or whimper, or even breathe. She's scared he'll disappear. That he'll leave and he won't return. She wants to hold him so tight and never let him go, and he doesn't want to go. He doesn't want her to let go.

But she has to let go.


	24. The Hostage

**THEY WAITED FOR** Thomas and Gally's in a cathedral-like building; at least, June thought it was a cathedral. She wasn't really sure.   
  
The cure for boredom was different for everyone; Frypan paced the back of the room, Brenda had taken it join herself to light all the candles she could find, Leanne was sitting on the window sill watching for their friends and another was sitting at a table to the side of the room, playing with a deck of cards.

A minute ago, Newt had entered the room and sat on a chair off to the right, made himself comfortable and let his eyes roam around the room.

Now, a minute later, June entered after having fixed her messy ponytail and crooked shirt, and sat on a chair across the room from Newt. She props her arm up on the table next to her and rests her head in her hand, eyes falling to him, who meets her gaze.

His eyes meet hers. _Really? You're going to play hard to get?_ His voice is sharp in her head, but she can hear the hint of sarcasm echoing behind it.

Juno struggles to keep a straight face, but keeps her eyes on him. _How can I play hard to get when you've already got me?_

Newt coughs to hide his laugh, covering his mouth with his hand quickly. _Wow, Junie. I don't think I've ever heard you so confident. Leanne must've rubbed off on you._

A twinkle of comedy shines in Juno's eyes, and even from across the room Newt can see it. _You don't think I could work up this courage on my own?_ Fake hurt is obvious in June's voice. _I mean, I kissed you first._

Newt watches her intently. _I think you could do anything on your own, other than work up the courage to do something like that, love._

If Juno were beside him, she probably would have smacked him for that. _Don't you dare 'love' me. That's not gonna get you in the green._ She looks down at her feet before up at Newt again.

Newt smiles to her from across the room. _You love it, and someday you'll admit it._

June ponders over his words for a moment before a small smirk tugs at her lips. She hides it behind her hand, leaning further onto the table. _You're not as flirty as Minho either, you know._

A pink tint flushes across Newt's cheeks and he ducks his head to try and hide it. He takes a second before responding. _Oh, so when this is all over you want me to move aside for Minho, huh?_

Although the comment meant to be sarcastic, Juno can hear a the jealousy dripping from his words. _Don't worry. There's only room in my heart for you._ His eyes meet hers again and she smiles at him sweetly.

He returns the smile. _That's good cause then it means I don't have to kill Minho._

Juno rolls her eyes dramatically, careful not to attract anyone else's attention, although none of them were looking. _I don't think you could kill anyone. You're just a little sweetheart._ She manages to make it sound like she's cooing at him.

It's Newt's turn to roll his eyes. _I think you're underestimating me. I've hurt WICKED's men before._

Juno shakes her head. _Yeah, but they weren't anyone you were close to._

Neither of them continue on with the conversation, but neither of them take their eyes off each other. Juno felt like Newt could see right past her mask, and read easily. She wanted to look away as his eyes bore into her soul but she couldn't, because he was vulnerable in this moment and she could read him too. He was worried. Maybe a little for himself but more for his friends, and it made Juno mad. He could also tell that.

He was the one dying, but he was worried about them, and God, June wanted to reach over to him and smack some sense into him.

"Will you two stop eye fucking?" Brenda scoffs, pretending to throw up. The two look away from each other quickly and Frypan snickers. It seems Brenda had already lit up all the candles she could find and was now just watching everyone. "You guys make me sick. You're so in love."

"Who's in love?" Thomas asks as he walks into the room alone.

"Newt and Juno." Frypan points to the two, embarrassing them even further.

"Mind your own bloody business!" Newt rolls his eyes.

"Well if you two hadn't been eye-fucking I wouldn't have realized and—" Brenda's interrupted by Thomas.

"We'll save this conversation for later." He rolls his eyes exasperatingly. "We've got her. They're outside."

Not a moment later, Gally walks in with Teresa, who has a cloth bag over her head. June shuffles in her seat to face where Gally pushes Teresa down. Newt comes to stand behind her chair, arms crossed over his body in a protective stance. She twists her neck to send him a small smile before facing Teresa once more.

An anger pulses through Juno's body the longer she watched Teresa; this is the girl who turned them over to WICKED.

But once, many months ago, Juno had grown to trust Teresa. So, she pushed her anger down and watched Gally push Teresa down onto a chair in the middle of the room.

There was a cloud of hesitance that passed over the teenagers of the Mazes, but it was blown aside when Gally yanks the cloth off of Teresa's head.

The girl's eyes land on Gally first, who moves to sit beside Thomas. "Gally?" She frowns at the sight of her captors, confusion clear in her voice and features.

Curiosity got the best of Juno and she couldn't help but wonder if Teresa was happy to see them — alive, that is, maybe not see them right now though.

"Here's how this is gonna go." Gally crosses his arms. "We're gonna ask you some questions, and you're gonna tell us exactly what we need to know. We'll start off simple." The boy pauses and June's breath catches in her throat as she awaits the question they all wanted answered. "Where's Minho?"

Gally stands, grabbing a chair and walking towards her as Teresa struggles to answer.

"You guys don't seriously think—"

He interrupts her by slamming the chair down in the ground in front of Teresa, blocking her view from Thomas. "Don't look at him." He says. "Why are you looking at him? Look at me." Teresa's eyes snap to Gally. "He's not gonna help you." Her eyes flutter to her feet, and there's a sense of dread in the room when she doesn't answer. "Now, we know you have Minho in the building." Gally states. "Where?"

As Teresa's eyes roam over the group, Juno masks her fear with a solid glare. She couldn't be scared right now — if not for herself, then for Minho.

"He's with the others in holding. Sub-level three."

"How many others?" Newt asks.

"Twenty eight."

The group looks over at Brenda expectantly. "I can make that work." She nods.

"No. No, you guys don't understand." Teresa shakes her head. "The whole level's restricted. You can't get in without a thumbprint ID."

"That's why you're gonna come with us." Thomas speaks up for the first time.

"Well, I don't know. We don't necessarily need her. Right?" Juno watched as Gally stands up, discarding the chair and moving towards the table they all sat by. He picks up a knife, looking down at it in consideration. "Not all of her. We just need her finger." He turns to face their captive, knife still in hand.

Juno feels the bile rise in her throat at the thought of cutting Teresa's finger, and she can't imagine what her reaction would be if they actually did cut her finger off.

Thomas, no. Stop him. June begs to the boy through their link, eyes meeting his pleadingly.

Thomas turns to Gally, shaking his head. "Gally, back off."

"What, are you squeamish? I guarantee you she's done a lot worse to Minho." He points the knife to her.

"Hey!" Leanne says loudly, getting their attention. "We're not cutting her thumb off, so quit wasting time." She says sternly.

Teresa watches them in contemplation before shrugging. "It won't make a difference." She puts on a brave face. "Do whatever you want to me. You still won't get through the front door. The sensors will pick you up the—"

"We know. We're tagged." Thomas stands up, making his way over to Teresa. "Property of WICKED." He crouched down beside her, holding up a scalpel. "You're gonna help us with that, too."


	25. The Truth About Forever

**JUNO WAITED IN** anticipation as Teresa prepared her tools behind her. June was the first one getting her tag out, and wasn't necessarily thrilled about it. As long as she didn't see her own blood, she'd be fine. She hoped.

She wasn't the only one in the room who waited in anticipation. Everyone was abuzz, moving around and preparing for a fight — for war. This could be the night where they ended it all; all the pain, all the running, it could be over. They hoped.

June could not help but find everything ironic. She had never let herself grow hopeful after the first group of girls escaped the Maze. She had never truly let herself hope until she met Leanne and her gang of misfit boys. Everything about them screamed 'hero' and June found herself jumping on the bandwagon before she truly comprehended what she was doing.

So here she was now, preparing for a war with the people who had always been winning. Their captors, who were always one step ahead.

But not this time.

This time, there was so much more at stake. Their lives had always hung in the balance of things, but now more than ever did their lives truly feel threatened. Maybe it was because Minho was with them, or one of them was dying, or maybe it's because they were going into the lion's den but whatever it is brought no relief to them. Instead, it only heightened their survival instincts. Perhaps that was dangerous —to hold on to the anger that they all possessed— but none of them truly seemed to care anymore.

Juno was pulled from her thoughts when Teresa made the first incision, startling June and making her pull away with a hiss.

"Sorry." Teresa mumbles as June leans back into her reach.

"It's fine." Juno hisses through her teeth again when she feels Teresa dig around for the tagged chip.

A silence lulls over them before Teresa pulls the chip out. "No, June, I'm sorry." She moves away and signals that she's finished before sighing. "Just be safe."

June turns to look at the girl cautiously before nodding. "You too."

She would not admit it aloud, but Juno still cared for Teresa. The girl may have turned them in, and risked their lives, but June still couldn't shake her worry for the troublesome girl. There was still a distaste held towards Teresa, but a hidden understanding between the two; they would both do what they needed to survive and they would both fight for the cause they believed in.

June still held a sense of pride —or admiration— for Teresa. The girl may have turned on them, and given their location to their enemy, but Teresa did it for a cause she believed in even if her friends —the only people she truly loved and who loved her back— would grow to hate her.

But hate had always been a strong word.

June moves away from Teresa and gives quick hugs to the group, telling them to stay safe. Brenda holds June a second or two longer than the others, whispering to her to take care of Jorge.

"We'll have eachothers backs." June nods, moving to Newt. The boy reaches for her without hesitation, pulling her to the side of the room —away from everyone else— and into his embrace. They stand like that for a minute or two, relishing in the feel of their bodies pressed together, Juno's face pressed into his shoulder and his hidden in her hair. Juno sucks a breath and pulls away from Newt to look up into his eyes. "Just keep fighting, Newt." Juno begs quietly.

"Always and forever." He smiles, pressing a soft kiss to her lips before pushing her away.

Walking away next to Jorge, she had that twinge in my stomach, like she was doing something wrong. Maybe she was. Every bone in her body screamed at her to stay behind. Stay with Thomas, stay with Brenda and stay with _Newt_. Stay to find Minho and bring WICKED down. However, she couldn't.

Perhaps things were never supposed to go her way, but she wouldn't know it then. No, she would know it hours later, when the boy she was growing to love was ripped away from her.

The more she moved forward, the more the world seemed to move in the opposite direction.

Still, she could not dwell on that now. So, instead, she thought of Newt's words; always and forever.

However, the truth about forever, is that it doesn't exit.


	26. Luck Running Short

**UPON THEIR SEARCH** for the berg that the Right Arm had planned on leaving behind, Jorge and Juno seemed to be in luck.

They found the aircraft being flown by Vince as he came to aid them. It seemed that he couldn't sit behind while they put their lives at risk — and Juno was grateful for that. She made sure Vince knew it, multiples times, which meant that by now he was annoyed with the girl and Jorge was forcing her down onto a seat away from the pilot's seat.

"June, stop stressing," Jorge tells her, watching her fingers tug at a loose string at the hem of her shirt. He takes her small hands in his larger ones and squeezes in reassurance. "They'll be fine. We've made it this far, they're fighters."

Juno huffs out, nodding her head. "I know they are, but I'm worried. I just wish I was there."

She was worried and she felt guilty. She should be there — standing alongside Newt while they helped get Minho out, bringing down WICKED as a team. That's what they had been these past six months; a team, a family. They worked together to stay alive and Juno wanted to work with them to end it all, but she could not be there.

She had not volunteered to go with Jorge, but both Jorge, Brenda and Newt were insistent that she go with the older man and help him with their escape plan. But that was just it; things had to go to plan for everything to work, and when did their plans ever follow through?

There was a high chance their plan was going wrong for her friends — especially because she held no trust in Lawrence. The man only chose to help them seeing as he held a hatred towards WICKED. They all did, however this man was dead-set on bringing the organization down. All they wanted was Minho, but he wanted to watch WICKED burn to the ground.

Truly, Juno wanted to bring WICKED down, but that did not involve killing their workers in punishment. There was an urgent need to survive, and some of these people only complied with the evil organization for this need. They weren't innocent, but honestly who was in this world? Whoever was must have gone through a great deal of work to stay that way.

"We'll be there soon." Vince reassures from the pilot seat.

"Yeah, but not soon enough." The girl grumbles under her breath.

Jorge shoots the girl an annoyed glare before getting up to speak with Vince quietly.

Meanwhile, it takes Juno everything to not try and reach out to one of the boys with her link. But an intrusion right now could be a distraction and she didn't want to risk anything. Plus, hearing their panicked voices would do nothing to soothe Juno's running thoughts.

Instead, she closes her eyes and breathes in slowly, then out slowly. Focusing on her breathing, the girl is able to take her mind off her worry and calm down — at least, calm her nerves a little.

There was no promise of return for anyone, and the thought alone made Juno's heart thunder in her chest. This could so easily be the end for any of them.

And some of them are at higher risk than others.

The darkness of the night offered cover for the berg, but as soon as the city was in sight it would instead contrast the burning city. What once was a city of glass was now the city of destruction; fires burnt higher than any skyscraper, flames licking at the sky without mercy. Bombs exploded, sending shards of glass soaring, and the people of the outskirts protested, uprising against the evil dictator; WICKED. It was time for a change.

Juno hadn't put it past Lawrence to turn on them and use their plan to his advantage. She assumed he would want something more than a cure. He would want revenge. They all did.

But this couldn't possibly be the solution, could it? Burning a city down? No, it couldn't, but that wouldn't stop anyone. Now that the massacres had already begun, there was no stopping them.

Vince flies them closer to the city, and Juno moved to stand behind Jorge in the passenger seat, peering over his shoulder and down at the scorching fire. The city was already beyond saving, and the people, well, they would have to save themselves.

According to everyone else, there was no room for mercy. And that's what worried Juno; her friends were selfless. Winston would stay behind to protect them from the cranks. Thomas wouldn't hesitate to run into a Maze for total strangers. Leanne would take a beating for Juno in the first few days they met. Minho would protect strangers of the Right Arm, even if it meant being captured. Frypan would comfort a stranger even if it meant taking a few hits for them in the process. Newt would throw himself in front of a stranger to save them and render himself infected. They all did it without second thought.

If you asked Juno what she had done for a stranger, she wouldn't say she stalled her escape from WICKED's compound for a girl she barely knew, or protected strangers from the Right Arm. She couldn't say she took a beating, or a bullet, or even gotten infected. Instead, she would shrug off this feeling is uselessness, and admit to herself that she wasn't as good a person as them. Not in her eyes, at least.

Because she was covered in blood. Vera's blood dripped from her fingers, tainting the ground Juno stepped on. Hally's blood blurred her eyes, and Luna's blood weighed down her clothes. Winston's blood made her stomach curl. Kiko and Reese's bruises stained her skin, and Leanne's scars were burnt into her mind.

Thomas' bravery outshone her. Minho's ability to crack jokes at any time would put Juno to shame. She could never compete with Frypan's comforting words and Newt's comforting touch. Nor could she compare to Brenda's loyalty, or Leanne's fierceness. She could never be as reliable as Jorge, or as cunning as Vince.

Instead, she was clingy, and selfish. She wanted her friends safe, no matter the cost. She could get jealous, and often times found herself growing moody.

Others would describe Juno as protective and expressive. She was heroic, and she put the needs of others before herself. Well, at least they thought she did. Truthfully, she wanted her friends safe because _she_ wouldn't be able to go on without them. _She_ wanted to make sure they were all right, at all times of the day. _She_ wanted Newt to look at her like Thomas looked at Leanne.

So tonight was her redemption night.

She wasn't like her friends. She wasn't a saviour. She was flawed, and that was okay. They were all flawed. Maybe she had more cracks in the foundation. Maybe that's why she felt alone.

There was only one way she didn't feel alone; when she was with Newt. It sounded cheesy, and so cliché, but it was the truth. Newt had no flaws, and his perfectness balanced out Juno's imperfectness. As long as he was around, she would always seek Newt out.

The second the berg touched down at their meeting point, Juno was snapped from her train of thoughts and leaping out of her seat to the hatch. Her eyes frantically searched for her friends, squinting in the blinding lights of the berg.

She saw Brenda first, and a sigh of relief rushed through her body. Frypan was next, waving half-heartedly. Behind them, twenty-eight kids were crouched, waiting for instructions from their saviours.

"Come on." Juno waves then forward, and the kids look to Brenda and Frypan before moving to the berg. "Careful." She helps pull some of them up the ramp, gesturing towards the seat.

"Watch your step. Okay?" Vince comes up beside Juno, helping her with the boarding kids.

"Vince?" Frypan exclaims, eyes wide with shock.

Juno was sure that is what she looked like when she and Jorge had found the man.

"Hey, it's good to see you, too." Vince nods curtly,

"Yeah, I know. We picked up a stray." Jorge adds sarcastically, a smirk on his face.

Vince scoffs, but a smile tugs at his lips. He ducks his head to hide it, and waves Brenda and Frypan forward. "Let's get out of here, all right?"

"We're not done yet." Brenda shakes her head, feet falling still at the bottom of the ramp as she looks up at them. "They're all still inside."

Jorge smirks. "Well, let's go get them, then."


	27. Goodbye, Dear Love

**"WELL, LET'S GO** get them then."

As soon as the words left Jorge's mouth, there was a pregnant pause between them all.

"Do we even know where they are?"

Brenda snaps out of her stupor and nods quickly. "Thomas said to meet them at the tunnels."

"Well then, all aboard." Vince climbs back into the berg, taking his place in the pilots seat with Jorge in the copilot seat.

 _Newt? How are you doing?_ She tries to connect to him, but it doesn't work. _Thomas?_

 _I'm here_. The boy responds, his voice out of breath even in her head.

_Is everything okay?_

_Not really— shit_. He cuts himself off, and the link is broken.

Before Juno can reach out again, the hatch is being opened and Brenda is descending, a vial of the cure in her hand.

They are paused in their steps only a few feet away from the berg when a voice rings out through the intercoms. "Thomas?" It's Teresa. "Can you hear me?" Her voice is loud around them. "I need you to listen to me."

"I know you have no reason to trust me, but I need you to come back." They all had no reason to trust Teresa, but they would all hear her out. "Thomas, you can save Newt. There's still time for him. There's a reason Brenda isn't sick anymore." Teresa pauses before continuing. "It's your blood."

Juno looks over at Brenda, who stands there, mouth parted in shock. "Do you understand? She isn't sick, because you cured her. She doesn't have to be the only one. All you have to do is come back. And this will all finally be over."

"Please. Just come back to me. I know you'll do the right..." Before she can finish, everything goes dark and her voice is cut off.

They all stand in silence, shock coursing through all their veins. All along, they had the cure with them. The thing they were searching for all this time was right under their noses. If Brenda had gotten a blood transfer from anyone else, she might not be here.

"Brenda!" Someone yells. They all turn to see Minho and Gally running their way. "Where's the serum?"

There's a still moment, it passes like slow-motion in her head; she makes eye-contact with Minho, and she knows. Newt isn't making it any further without the serum.

Something snapped in Juno's mind, and her body soon followed. She grasps the serum out of Brenda's hands, and she flies past Minho and Gally in a flash.

Both of them are stunned, but they break out of it when she calls over her shoulder for them to follow. "Where are they?"

 _I'm almost there, Newt. Stay with me_. She begs, legs pumping faster than they ever have before. She was nearly passing Brenda at the speed she was running.

She needed to get to him. She was dependent, and she knew that. Maybe she was a little too dependent on her friends, but they all needed eachother. They always had eachothers backs, and that wouldn't stop now.

Now, Thomas, Newt and Leanne needed her, and she wouldn't shy away because she was scared. She wouldn't hide because she was worried of the what-ifs, and she certainly wouldn't run away because of the fear.

Bullets and bombs exploded through the air, but June didn't stop. Even when her friends did to take cover behind stray cars, she kept running. She ignored their yells, pumping her legs even faster. She was jumping over bodies, through rubble and fire but it didn't matter. She just needed to get to him.

 _It's okay, June_. A sign of relief left her body harshly when she could hear his voice. It echoed in her head, full of sadness, pain and regret. _Everything is okay. It's—_

And suddenly, she felt empty, like she had lost something. Or, maybe losing something wasn't the right way to explain it. It was more like something I'm her had been broken. She wondered if this is what it felt like to break a leg, or an arm. But no, this wasn't a limb. This was her heart.

Their link.

That's when she knew it. He was gone.

Rounding the corner, June stops short when she sees Thomas hunched over a still Newt and Leanne kneeling next to them.

Everything became all too real all too quickly, and June could barely understand how it all happened. Just earlier, they had shared their first kiss, and now he was gone. He was gone.

Not a sound escaped her lips as Thomas made eye contact with her, unmoving. It wasn't his fault; Juno knew that. But Thomas didn't, even as he stood up from beside Newt —unnoticed by Leanne— and moved away, picking up a discarded gun and jogging in the other direction, he didn't know that. Yet, he needed to.

There was this pounding in her chest. She couldn't hear anything; not Leanne's cries, not Brenda's soft words of assurance, not even the war still raging in.

An unmistakable feeling of emptiness settled inside of Juno.

This boy had taken up such a large part of her life that she couldn't to let him go. He could not just leave her like this, when they were so close to their happy ending. Juno had spent years watching her friends die while they tried to reach this point and now that they were here she felt she couldn't advance without him.

She barely registered Minho's cries. She could not hear Brenda's quiet sniffles. She didn't look up from Newt's body. She couldn't see Frypan on his knees a few feet away, or Gally standing far behind them all, too afraid to approach for the reality would set in; Newt was gone.

This boy, one full of smiles and laughter, made out of pure positive sunshine that radiated so brightly, could not be extinguished to a dim coal. He could not blow away into a breeze of ash. He was always the one who had held onto hope, and who —sometimes forcibly— made them hopeful as well.

Juno couldn't understand how she had lived those first few months without him by her side. Those months, where they pushed eachother away like two magnets repelling eachother, would be her biggest regret from now until she died. They were supposed to make it to the safe-haven, together.

Newt had always been that golden, late-afternoon sun of blinding happiness. She would joke about it at their temporary safe-haven; how she hated it. Really, it was the only thing everyone knew she was lying about. She could never hate something that had the smallest implication of Newt in it. It was simply impossible for the brunette to despise something so pure and heartening.

Yet, here she was, hating him for leaving her.


	28. The Search For Her

**THE HEAT OF** the fire did nothing to wane Juno off, even as she trudged through the rubble. Nothing could wake her off of her mission, because if there was one thing she needed now more than ever, it was closure. And closure meant knowing; knowing about her past, about her family and about herself. She _needed_ to know.

So, the team had collected themselves enough to move, Juno had parted ways with them. It wasn't done easily; no one wanted to lose anyone else. That's why she had slipped away when everyone turned to leave. They wouldn't let her go otherwise.

WICKED's building was empty of most workers, however she would pass the one odd worker in certain hallways. The lights flickered, the emergency lights turned on, then those turned off. She couldn't get to the computers now; the database would be swiped clean even if she manages to get power to one. Instead, she would have to find the filing room.

It seems fate has other plans for her, because as she pushes past a pair of metal doors a voice breaks through the silence. "Hello, June."

"Janson." She acknowledges him briefly, eyes searching for an exit.

"This can all stop. You just gotta help me out." Janson suggests, his own eyes focused on Juno.

"You're a monster." Juno spits, eyes narrowing towards the man who had caused them all so much pain. "I would never help you."

"I'm not the real monster, Juno."

June shakes her head, thinking for a moment before scoffing. "If you ask a child to draw a monster, they will draw a distorted figure." She says. "Why is it a monster?"

Janson watches her carefully. "Because it's what they were taught."

"Exactly." Juno nods. "But just because that's what they were taught, doesn't mean it's right." She doesn't take her eyes off of Janson. "As children, we were all taught that WICKED was good. Except that you wiped those memories from us, so we had to teach ourselves." She takes a few steps forward. "When we finally learnt enough to teach ourselves, we had the truth." She takes one more step forward, almost tauntingly. "That WICKED is bad."

"Bad, huh?" Janson's smirk falls. "You call creating a cure bad?"

"I call experimenting on innocent kids bad." She growls, a bite in her voice she had never heard before.

It seemed Janson had heard enough, because after a quick moment of silence he raises his gun and fires haphazardly. Juno dodges to the side quickly, and a yelp escapes her lips when a bullet grazes her side just enough to tear at her shirt.

"You're lucky you're not the one I'm searching for, Juno!" He yells. "Or else you would be dead."

Another round is fired, and Juno scrambled up to run down the hall, turning quickly out of sight. Everything is eerily quiet in the building considering there's a war raging on outside the crumbling walls.

While passing an open hallway, the silence is broken by a short yell and hands are on Juno, pushing her back. June reaches for her knife, but the person mutters a quiet "stop" and pulls her into a nearby storage closet. A dull red light illuminates the room, and Juno can see her captor.

"Doctor McDonnell?"

The doctor nods, out of breath. "Cranks, in the building." She mutters.

"Yeah, and a crazy Janson." Juno adds.

"What- what are you doing here?"

"I'm looking for the personal files WICKED kept on all the kids." Juno admits quietly.

A look of confusion settles on Kate McDonnell's face before understanding overtakes it. "I can't convince you otherwise, can I?"

"No, you can't."

Kate sighs in defeat, shaking her head in disagreement. "I shouldn't let you do this." She grumbles. Before Juno can ask what she means, Kate is pulling a second gun out of her waistband and handing it to Juno. "Take this to protect yourself. Don't hesitate." They hold eye-contact for a long moment before Juno nods. "The filing room is in sub-level one. It's the third door on the left, and the key-pads have all been disabled."

"Thank you."

From there, it was easy. She found her way to the basement, and this was it;

The search for her.

She had always felt lost. Whether it be lost in thought, lost in life or in her soul, she had never felt she was where she should be.

She moved quickly, eyes scanning the numbers on each metal shelf. MAZE-X.

Searching through the names of the first maze sent a wave of hurt through Juno's chest. This was her family. Where were these girls now? Where was she?

There was nothing wrong with her, per se. The chest pieces just didn't seem to fit right. She was no queen; able to make any move she wished. However, she certainly was not pawn; no one would ever use Juno. She was not a knight; she didn't even know how to stand up for herself when she should, and whenever she did she felt extremely guilty. But she was no king, needing someone else's protection.

A small cry of happiness left her mouth when she found the folder with her name on it. But before she could open it, the building around her grumbled in disagreement and dust fell from the ceiling. She had to get out of there, fast.

With the file clutched tight against her chest, Juno left the filing room and entered the stairwell. She climbed the steps quickly, though her mind was somewhere else.

There was plenty of uncertainty in her, and didn't know where she stood because she didn't stand at all. Her body lay in pieces in the back of her mind, a discarded and unfinished puzzle tucked away for the long nights of sleeplessness when she allowed herself to overthink.

The search for her will never be over.

Especially because as she turned the corner out of the stairwell, she tripped over a piece of rubble and dropped the file. Her body fell forward against the ground and she watched as the paper slid across the room before she could stop it, only coming to a slow as it entered the fire that burnt.

This time, the cry leaving her lips was one of anger. Her hand slammed down on the marble floor, a dull thud compared to the thunder of the crumbling walls around her. This was her chance and she had lost it. She would never find solace in her past, and there was nothing to change that now.

And now, the world around her was falling apart. There was no chance of saving now.

WICKED couldn't be their saving grace, so instead they brought Hell upon Earth.

The heat of the fire was beginning to burn Juno's skin and the merciless war was still raging on outside, though it seemed people were beginning to make their escape or lay for their final sleep.

This is what war did to a person. It eroded them like a stone until nothing was left but a raw skeleton of a person, filled with nothing but hatred and bitterness.

Here Juno lay, bruised on the marble floors of WICKED's home base as the city of glass was burnt down to rubble. Her fingers were clenched tightly in her first and her eyes were focused on the burning paper across from her. Brenda's books were true - war did nothing but leave death in its wake.

And she way angry. She was so, so angry. This bitterness spread through her chest, flooding down to her stomach, into her legs and feet. She seemed frozen in anger instead of fear; that's where the books lied. There was not a single ounce of fear in her body; instead pure rage.

Before she could act out, a hand gripped her bicep and pulled her to a standing position. There were words shouted to her, but they were muffled. Her eyes were fixated on the burning paper and a lump formed in her throat.

Soft hands gripped her face harshly, pulling her to look towards this person. She met brown eyes, and for a split second she thought it was him before she shook the feeling off and grasped Kate's hand in return.

"We have to go, Juno. Let's go. It's not worth it."

There was a part of Juno's mind screaming for her to find a new solution, but she knew there was none.

That bittersweet feeling of nothingness perched over her shoulder. Everything was over. They were done. This moment that they had lived for, that had pushed them to live, was over. Now, what more could she live for? Certainly not herself, because this emptiness felt as if it could never be filled.


	29. The Safety Blanket

**SOFT WINDS BLEW** Juno's hair from her face as she watched the people below bustle around the Safe-Haven. The setting sun warmed her skin in contrast to the cold wind, and she found her cheeks growing warm, though she refused to remove any of her layers.

It was odd, to think they were safe. There would still be people who tried to rebuild, and for all the wrong reasons, but they would be stopped. The Right Arm would put an end to it.

Below her, people had begun to gather wood for the bonfire they were having tonight.

Sitting atop the hill, she almost felt like she had months ago, when she first met Thomas and his group of misfits; she felt excluded. She couldn't help but think about how it was Newt to make her feel better.

But he wasn't here to do that for her anymore, and though every ounce of her was terrified for what the future held for her, she couldn't sit around and wait. So, instead she opted to stand up and make her way down the slope, grabbing an armful of logs and joining Brenda's side to walk them down to the waterfront.

But even distracting herself wasn't enough to keep her mind off the ache in her chest. She desperately missed Newt, and it had only been a day. She had this awful twinge in her stomach, like she was doing something wrong.

The world would always need more of Newt than it would ever need or Juno, and she would not wallow in self-pity with that being known. It was the truth and it always would be.

Night fell quickly, and the large bonfire burned brightly. Everyone was seated, chatting quietly between themselves. There was happiness in the air, floating around in their melodious words as they shared memories of those they lost. And though this happiness was bright, Juno felt as if she was choking on the sadness that lay thick in her throats and the way their names would get caught in her throat when they passed stories around.

Slowly, the talking silences down as Vince walks out to stand in front of them. Juno grasps Brenda's hand in support, sharing a small smile with her. but Brenda wasn't oblivious; she could immediately tell that the smile didn't reach Juno's brown eyes.

"We have come a long way together. So many have sacrificed so much to make this place possible." Vince begins, breaking Brenda from the saddening thoughts. "Your friends," Leanne reaches over to grab Juno's hand. The three girls smile between themselves. "And your family." Vince raises his glass in the air. "So here's to the ones who couldn't be here. Here's to the friends we lost."

The rest of them copy his gesture, raising their glasses in the air. "This place is for you. It's for all of us." He nods. "But this," He twists to gesture to the rock behind him with the carving knife in his hand. "This is for them. So, in your own time, in your own way, come make your peace." He lodges the knife into a log beside him. "And welcome to the Safe Haven." He yells. The people clap and cheer loudly, their bittersweet happiness only increasing.

The growing darkness of the night did nothing to wane their happiness. However, it the darkness did increase the bitter aftertaste they all recognized as loss. This win against WICKED would be weighed down with all they had lost throughout their years of battle. Some fought for longer, others harder, but in the end they had joint together to bring an end to the manic organization that sent their heads spiralling.

But many tried to keep their minds off the bad and focused on the good. The bonfire was built even bigger, a offering heat in the cold world.

Juno stood alone, staring into the fire as she let the heat seep into her bones. She couldn't help but think of Newt; this is how she felt with him.

He had always been gentle with her. There were rarely any times Juno could remember him being mean. And he always took his time, never pushing or rushing her into anything. When they first met, she was freezing. But he was the flame she sat by, slowly letting the heat from his flames seep into her. It flooded in slowly, all the way down to her bones until she felt so comfortable she felt she could do anything in his arms and still feel comfortable.

But he had not been around long enough for fire to catch, and now Juno stood beside a fire because her own had burnt out; a lump of coal settling deep in her chest, now only a sad memory of him.

A different heat spread through Juno as a hand was placed on her shoulder softly. The hand pushes her hair behind her shoulder, a seemingly comforting gesture that only brought discomfort to Juno. Newt used to do that.

She turns to meet Minho's sad eyes, his mouth opening to whisper something but she stops him with her soft words. "It's not my name to put on there." She sends him a small smile, fighting to hold back her tears. She had cried more these past six months then she had in her eighteen years of life. "He was your brother before he was anything to me." She squeezes his bicep reassuringly. "He would want you to do it. I have someone else's name to put up there."

With this said, Minho nodded shortly and shared a soft smile with her before returning to Frypan's side.

Before Juno could make her escape to the bed that she longed for dearly, another person was approaching her from the side. She turns her body to see Leanne approaching her.

Leanne opens her mouth to sleep but Juno cuts her off as she throws her arms around the girl. "He used to mumble about a girl named Elliott in his sleep." Juno mumbles softly into Leanne's shoulder.

"She was-"

She shakes her head against Leanne's shoulder. "You don't need to tell me. If Newt had wanted to tell me, he would have." She smiles softly, pulling away from Leanne. "She was his secret to tell." Juno reaches down to hold Leanne's hand. "I hope he's with her now."

Leanne smiles at Juno, a flicker of sadness passing through her chest. Juno was so strong; everyone there knew it, but that didn't stop them from worrying. They all knew Juno would hold herself accountable for something she could not change - for something she had no control whatsoever over. "He is." She nods. "I know it."

Juno might never find solace in her past, but she could always find comfort in what the future held for her. If Newt could find peace in this world, she could find it too.

Again, as Leanne left someone else was by Juno's side in a flash. This time, however, Juno was grateful for this person's company.

Brenda was quick to pull a tearing up Juno into her embrace, flattening her arm comfortingly.

"I'm tired." Juno sniffles quietly.

Brenda nearly misses the words, but she didn't need to hear them to know. "Come on, Junie. Let's go to bed."

Brenda pulls away from Juno, linking their arms and beginning to move towards their hut. Juno shakes her head quickly, stopping Brenda in her tracks.

The words get caught in Juno's throat, but as soon as Brenda sees Juno's eyes flutter to the stone in the centre of the celebration, she understands.

Brenda nods in understanding. "You're good on your own?" Truthfully, the doe-eyed girl knew Juno would want to go alone, but she needed the reassurance.

Juno nods shortly, fingers playing with the hem of her sleeves; a clear sign she was anxious. "I'll be here." Brenda smiles encouragingly, and Juno manages a small smile before turning towards the stone.

She knew from the first time Vince had showed them this what name she would put up there. It had leapt up from the depths of her heart right into her throat, forming a lump that she still couldn't seem to swallow away. The knife was heavy in her hands, adding to the weight that seemed to slow her movements.

She was the only person by the large stone, ready to carve a name in. Her eyes fluttered over all the other names, but she found herself stopping quickly when tears pooled in her eyes. She didn't have to look over her shoulder to know that her friends were watching her carefully. It's like they were waiting for her to break. The stress of being watched got to her quickly, so she moved around to the back of the rock. It was dimly lit on this side, the light of the moon seemingly the only thing helping. The sounds of the celebration were muffled and here, she felt ready.

She raised a shaky hand, her grip on the knife tightening enough to make her fingertips pulse white. Then, she relaxed and felt more at ease with herself.

Once the name was finished, she took a step back to admire her work. It was a little wonky, but the name was unmistakable.

Vera.

A secret that she would bring to the grave, once known by many now only known by three. Hally and Luna had kept their promise, keeping the secret in death. Even Newt, the first person Juno had confessed this guilt to -the only person she had confessed to- was gone.

Juno had thought that this would help her heal. However, as she stared at the names around her win dirty little secret, she realized this wouldn't help. A name carved into a piece of stone would not lift the suffocating weight off of Juno's chest. The comforting blanket that once held her in the darkness had begun to tighten, it's grip unforgiving and relentless.

She quickly found her way back to Brenda and the two girls made their way to their hut, where they prepared for bed. Tonight, Juno didn't even need to ask as Brenda crawled into her cot with her.

The two girls wrapped their arms around eachother, holding the other tightly as Juno sobbed silently. Brenda rested her chin on Juno's head, and she found her own tears blurring her vision at the sound of Juno's choked sobs. Both girls had lost so much for this win that they both begun to wonder if it was all really worth it.

After her sobs quieted, Juno spoke up quietly in the darkness. "The only thing worse than heartbreak is loneliness." She mumbles, unsure of whether Brenda was even awake of not. It didn't really matter to her, though, because she needed to get these words off her chest. They felt the heaviest. "And I just feel so lonely."

"You're not alone, Junie." Brenda whispers softly. "You'll never be alone."

"I know I'm not, but I just feel so lonely." Juno nuzzles herself further into Brenda's embrace, seeking warmth. "Don't leave me, Bren." She begs. "Don't ever leave me."

"Never."

Brenda was there to keep her grounded. She was a blanket of softness and solace that would protect her from anything and everything. It was pleasant, and one of the only things that Juno would enjoy in the months to come.

June knew that she would get better. She would get better because she was strong. It would take a while; long nights where Brenda crawled into bed with her to comfort eachother, long days where she would turn around and expect Newt to be there, but she would get there. It would take support, and Juno would surely grow clingy. She would be protective, and jealous. She would be flawed. But she would realize, as time passed without Newt, that they were all flawed. None of them had ever been perfect.

Minho would need a hand on whoever was nearest; physical proof they were there, that this wasn't a cruel dream placed in his head by WICKED. Frypan would need someone to talk to, and instead of being the advice-giver he would need the advice given to him. Brenda would lose herself in her books, but eventually she wouldn't find solace in the fantasy worlds; instead she would find comfort in being around her friends. Thomas and Leanne would lean on eachother heavily, but they would always have the other's back. It would take time, but Gally would become friends with them all again, and he would patch up and build good relationships with them all. Jorge would keep an eye on the aging teenagers; a constant father in their lives.

And Juno, well, she thought she would need her space. She wouldn't give it to herself at first; instead being the warm body Minho needed, or the councilor Frypan seeked out. She would be the reality for Brenda, and the first new friend Gally would make. She would continue to be the good daughter Jorge had never gotten, balancing out the reckless daughter Brenda had given him.

As time went on, she would realize it was the opposite of space that she needed. She just needed to be there for her family, because in helping them she would help herself.


	30. Epilogue

_seven years later._

**SHE COULD FEEL** his breath on the back of her neck before she opened my eyes. Honestly, Juno didn't want to open them. The soft lull of crashing waves soothed her back into a doze, happy to stay in the warmth of his arms for a little longer.

She would be content to stay there for the rest of the day, hell, the rest of eternity. However, both of them had jobs to do, so soon enough they would have to get up.

She shifts in bed and his arms tighten around her subconsciously, pulling her closer to his body. She giggles softly, rolling around to face him.

Minho's eyes are closed but a smile tugs at the corner of his lips gently. His arms tighten again, pulling her even closer. He hides his face in her crook of her neck, lips pressing to her ticklish spot.

"Minho." She whines quietly, pushing him back a little.

He pushes his lip out in a pout. "No." He groans. "I don't wanna get up."

"We have to." She whispers, brushing his hair away from his face. It had gotten long, and she would need to cut it yet _again_.

"Actually..." He stretches the word out, an evil grin growing on his face. "I pulled some strings and got us both the morning off."

"So you're saying you guilt-tripped Brenda into taking my shift." She purses her lips, though she's fighting off a smile.

"Maybe..." He scrunches his nose up in defeat before hiding his face in the crook of her neck again.

Juno finds herself shuffling closer to him, cold. Actually, it had been getting colder during the past month or so. The winds off the waterfront had picked up, and clouds rolled in to hide the sun more often.

A cry breaks Juno from her daze. A cry, not of fear, but one of joy. _Joy_?

Sharing a confused look, the two climb out of bed and pull on their fleeces before exiting their small home. June exits first, stopping in her tracks and causing Minho to step into her back. His hands fly to her waist to stabilize them both, but even if Juno had fallen nothing could have broken her from this daze of wonder.

A powdery white covered the ground, sparkling in an undisturbed thin layer. Suddenly, she felt as if the world's flaws had disappeared under a quilt of white, fluffy enough to soften the blow of any cruel intentions that had once plagued the earth. It was dazzling, and nearly blinding to her eyes as Juno took her first steps in her beat-up converse, not caring that she could feel the cold through her shoes. Her mouth was parted in shock, her hand raised in front of her to catch fragile snowflakes. They would melt the moment they met her burning skin.

A small laugh escapes her mouth, and she turns to meet Minho's eyes. A smile graces his lips, his cheeks tinted a soft pink from the cold and his breath coming out in a cloud of white. She's in his arms in the blink of an eye, laughing so beautifully Minho would swear his ears were blessed. His arms held her body close, hands cradling her head to his chest that shook with his own laughter full of happiness and wonder. It was incredible.

Then, a flash of white -pure with malicious intentions- met Juno's back and a shriek left her lips.

She reluctantly pulls away from Minho's protective grasp, spinning around only to receive another snowball flying her way. This one narrowly misses her head. A gasp escapes her lips and her eyes fall on Brenda, who's reddening hands are already forming another snowball.

Brenda smirks and launches this snowball, but Juno dodges to the side just in time. Instead, the snowball hits Minho's chest.

Juno's hands fly to cover her mouth, trying to contain her laughter as Minho's eyes widen. He mumbles something to himself, then bends down to create a snowball. Instead of launching it towards Brenda, he swerves at the last moment and throws it to Juno, hitting her square in the stomach.

Then, it's all out war.

People exit their homes to join the fight, laughing in glee at the sight of snow. Teams are formed, forts are built, and by the end of it Juno's shoes are soaked through and her hands are numb. But it's all worth it, and she wouldn't take any moments back.

She finds herself running through the snow, passing a kissing Reese and Kiko, and a laughing Brenda and Gally. She passes Leanne shoving snow down Thomas' shirt, and Frypan trying to start a fire very unsuccessfully next to Jorge as the two share jokes. She passes Kate and Vince swinging their linked hands, and Valeria with her sister. She keeps running, until she finds him.

Minho stands in the snow, a burst of red against the stark white. A comforting heat spreads through Juno's chest as she meets his eyes. He stops midway through his conversation with Aris, who rolls his eyes at the two and leaves Minho's side (surely to find Sonya and Harriet). Minho smiles, his own cheeks flushing a darker red as Juno jogs towards him, jumping into his arms the moment she's close enough.

Minho made Juno feel better, but he wasn't her superhero that would make everything better. Juno had to be the superhero in her own story. However, whenever he was around, Juno didn't feel lonely anymore. He filled the void, and he made everything better. He wasn't a cure, but he was her saving grace.

With her arms and legs wrapped around his body and her face hidden where his neck and shoulder meet, Juno sighs. "Hi." She whispers sweetly.

"Hey." He breathes out, warm breath tickling the side of Juno's neck. She drops to the ground and he pushes some of her flyaways out of her face. "What was that for?"

"I don't know." She hums, grinning sheepishly. "I love you."

"I love you too." He smiles, leaning down to press his lips against hers in a soft kiss. Her fingers thread through his hair to pull him impossibly closer, enjoying the warmth rolling off of him. His hands fall to the side of her neck, holding her gently in place. God, everything just felt so perfect. 

When the two pull away, Juno stands up on the tip of her toes to press a chaste kiss against his lips.

"Why are you being so affectionate?" He asks, though he's not complaining. He was just as affectionate as her -if not more- and he was even less hesitant to pull her into a kiss in front of all their friends. He always had a hand on her, and he was always whispering that he loved her. They could be in the middle of a Council meeting and he would lean in close, with his hand on her lower back, and whisper that he loved her. She would simply shake her head and push him away gently, though not too far because she enjoyed his touch. Actually, she enjoyed everything about him; his possessiveness (strong enough to match her own), his affection (a lot stronger than hers), and his forwardness (definitely a lot stronger than hers, as she was always avoiding getting right to the point, meanwhile he would just spit it out). She could lie and say she didn't like it, but she never asked him to stop and it was a dead giveaway to him that she did enjoy it.

She shakes her head, but her smile never leaves her face. "I just really love you."

He knew why she was being this way. They all knew it; the snow was a sign. A sign that mother-nature was fixing herself. A sign of hope.

 _Beyond the walls_ of their mazes there was a world waiting for them. They didn't know it then, but there was. A world that's beautiful, ugly, and sad, and raw, and happy. A world so full of wonder and emotions. Those walls aren't stopping them now. They are not stopping Juno now. And she doesn't want to be afraid to feel those emotions anymore. Instead, she's _embracing_ them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end of Juno's story!
> 
> I just want to say a big thanks to everyone who took the time to read this!


End file.
